Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is leading the prosecution of former President Donald Trump and 14 others in Georgia, has come under fire in recent weeks after several allegations were made about misappropriation of state funds used in the high-profile case.
An attorney representing Michael Roman, one of the 14 co-defendants, filed a motion on Jan. 8 to dismiss the case based on alleged “improper” behavior by prosecutors.
The attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, accuses Ms. Willis of using money meant for clearing COVID-19-era backlogs to hire private attorney Nathan Wade as a special prosecutor on the case. The attorney further alleges that Ms. Willis was in a romantic relationship with Mr. Wade and benefited financially from the arrangement through trips to various cities with him.
At the same time, Mr. Wade is seeking to divorce his estranged wife, Joycelyn Wade.
In court filings from the divorce case, Ms. Wade corroborates the existence of the trips through bank records. Ms. Willis and Ms. Wade then made several personal accusations against each other via court filings after Ms. Wade’s attorneys subpoenaed Ms. Willis for a deposition in the divorce case.
Ms. Willis hasn’t publicly denied allegations or offered explanations thus far, but answers are expected to be forthcoming in a motion no later than Feb. 2 and during a Feb. 15 court hearing scheduled by Fulton County Superior Judge Scott McAfee.
The district attorney will have to respond to the motion, which argues that she and her team should be dismissed from the case because of “improper” behavior, but the judge may not issue an immediate ruling.
Outside the case, Ms. Willis has now become the subject of investigations herself.
The Election Case
On Aug. 14, 2023, President Trump and 18 others were indicted for allegedly violating Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and on 40 other counts for their actions to challenge the 2020 election results.
Four of the original defendants have since made guilty pleas, bargaining down several felony charges to misdemeanors or one felony. None has received jail time, and all are required to cooperate with prosecutors and are likely to testify against the remaining defendants.
