The drama for Fulton County DA Fani Willis is getting a little thicker.
Reports are blowing up that Willis has now been accused of doctoring the timeline of her affair with a prosecutor that she had put on the Trump RICO case in Fulton County, GA.
Talking Points…
- Allegations of inappropriate relationship levied against Willis
- Willis accused of doctoring timeline
- Analysis
The first allegations of an affair between Willis and prosecutor Nathan Wade were made in a January filing by one of Donald Trump's co-defendants, Michael Roman. In the motion, Roman's attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, alleged that the relationship between the two attorneys created a conflict of interest in the case.
Roman has portrayed this relationship as a way for Willis and Wade to pay for their romantic activities. For instance, in the original filing, it was alleged that Wade billed 24 consecutive hours in a single day. To that point, he had been paid more than $650,000, far more than the RICO attorney Willis had brought on board to help. Wade responded to the allegations:
"At times, I have made and purchased travel for District Attorney Willis and myself from my personal funds. At other times District Attorney Willis has made and purchased travel for she and I from her personal funds.
"I have no financial interest in the outcome of the 2020 election interference case or in the conviction of any defendant."
Donald Trump immediately pounced on the news, demanding that Willis be removed from the case and the charges against him be dropped. Additionally, it was later revealed that Willis' office was paying Wade far more than an experienced RICO attorney that Wade brought in specifically to help with the RICO charges against Trump and his co-defendants.
Willis eventually admitted that she and Wade were in a relationship, but Roman has now filed an additional motion making yet another allegation against Willis. This time, he is saying that the timeline of the affair was not honestly portrayed and that Willis and Wade were in a relationship far earlier than was previously believed.
In the new filing, Roman's attorney claims the two were involved before the case against Trump was filed. Merchant wrote:
"Willis and Wade claim they did not have a personal, romantic relationship before Willis appointed Wade as a special prosecutor, but Terrence Bradley ('Bradley') will refute that claim.
"Thus, Bradley can confirm that Willis contracted with Wade after Wade and Willis began a romantic relationship, thus rebutting Wade's claim in his affidavit that they did not start dating until 2022."
Bradley is a Georgia attorney who is reportedly a friend and business associate of Wade. According to Bradley's claim, Willis and Wade were involved prior to Willis being made Fulton County DA in January 2021.
I have read analysis by numerous legal pundits on this, and the general consensus is that while the optics on this are terrible, it is unlikely to impact the case significantly. However, if Willis did lie about the timeline, this really starts to undermine her credibility in the case, which is a game-changer regarding the validity of the charges; at least, that is how Roman's attorney is presenting the narrative.
To that point, in the latest filing, Merchant wrote:
"When the lines get blurred between a prosecutor's interest in her personal fame and publicity and her public duty, the system breaks down, as does the public's confidence in the process itself, which threatens to undermine the public's confidence in the outcome."
Willis is now fighting off attacks on several fronts. She is trying to quash subpoenas by Roman's defense team for a scheduled hearing on February 15 as well as Merchant having filed a complaint against Wilis for violating the Georgia Open Records Act. Willis is now under investigation by the House Judiciary Committee after a whistleblower alleges a misuse of taxpayer money.
