Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be removed from the election interference case against former President Donald Trump to uphold the integrity of the criminal justice system, a court filing on Monday said.
The Georgia Court of Appeals can use this case to establish that a prosecutor in the state who labors under an actual or perceived conflict of interest will be disqualified, the filing said. “This will ensure that the public continues to have confidence in Georgia’s judicial proceedings and that the guardrails of justice have held up.”
The brief was filed by lawyers Ashleigh and John Merchant, the wife-and-husband team representing former Trump campaign official Mike Roman. In January, Roman filed the initial challenge to remove Willis from the case based on her romantic relationship with former special prosecutor Nathan Wade.
Roman, Trump and seven co-defendants are appealing an order from Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who allowed Willis to stay on the case provided that Wade resign from it, which he did. The appeals court, by accepting the case in May, ground to a halt the racketeering case against the former president. It has yet to say whether it will hear arguments on the appeal and has until March to issue its opinion as to whether Willis and her office must be disqualified.
Roman’s latest filing said McAfee erred when he found that Willis did not have an actual conflict of interest in the election interference case. Because Wade paid about $13,000 for trips with Willis to Miami, the Caribbean and Napa Valley, she “obtained a personal, financial benefit from the prosecution in the form of monetary gains and other gifts and favors, so there was an actual conflict of interest mandating her disqualification,” the filing alleged.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
Willis’ and Wade each testified that Willis reimbursed her then-special prosecutor with cash for the trips.
Roman’s brief recounted that McAfee found that “unusual” and “understandably concerning” because no documentation supporting the payments was submitted. And it noted that McAfee found “potential untruthfulness” in Willis’ and Wade’s testimony that their relationship began after, not before, Wade’s appointment.
Roman’s motion also said that McAfee’s finding that an appearance of impropriety existed should have been enough to disqualify her from the case.
“Not only does the trial court’s order violate established Georgia law, it undermines the very foundation of the judicial process and seriously threatens to erode public confidence in the outcome of any trial,” the filing contended.
By allowing Willis and her office to remain, the case moves forward with a “continuing appearance of impropriety and dishonesty,” the filing said. “Wade’s (forced) resignation does not change the nature and character of Willis’ actions and statement. Wade’s resignation does not alleviate the appearance of impropriety by Willis herself.”
The DA’s office is to file its response to the defendants’ briefs early next month.
With the Fulton criminal case against Trump in limbo, Trump has scored enormous legal victories in the two federal cases against him. The U.S. Supreme Court granted him broad presidential immunity in the Jan. 6 insurrection case in Washington. On Monday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the classified documents case against the former president in Florida, finding special counsel Jack Smith was improperly appointed.
Trump’s lead Atlanta lawyer Steve Sadow noted Cannon’s decision in a post on X, once known as Twitter. “Hopefully and justly,” he added, “the GA case should be next after the GA Court of Appeals disqualifies Willis.”
About the Author
