A state appeals court on Thursday removed Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from the Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump and others, the president-elect’s latest legal victory in criminal cases that threatened his career and freedom.
The case against Trump and more than a dozen others has been stalled for months due to an appeal related to a romantic relationship Willis had with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, whom she appointed to lead the case.
Citing an “appearance of impropriety” that would not normally warrant such removal, the Georgia Court of Appeals panel said in a 2-1 ruling that “this is the rare case in which disqualification will be imposed and no other remedy will be sufficient to restore public confidence in the fairness of these proceedings.” ” Willis’ office immediately filed a notice of intent to ask the Georgia Supreme Court to review the decision.
But pursuing a criminal case against a sitting president is practically impossible. Trump will return to the White House after defeating efforts to impeach him and empowering him with a Supreme Court ruling that grants him virtual immunity for any “official acts” he takes in office.
The development comes weeks after Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith dropped two federal lawsuits against the next president, and with adjudication in a separate New York money case on hold indefinitely as a result of Trump’s November victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. . .
An Atlanta grand jury indicted Trump and 18 others in August 2023, using the state’s anti-racketeering law to accuse them of participating in a wide-ranging scheme to illegally try to overturn Trump’s narrow 2020 presidential election loss to Democrat Joe Biden in Georgia. The alleged plan included Trump calling Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to urge him to help find enough votes to beat Biden. Four people pleaded guilty.
Trump told Fox News Digital that the issue “should not be allowed to go any further.” The president-elect added: “Everyone should get an apology, including these amazing patriots who have been caught up in this for years.”
Steve Sadow, Trump’s lead lawyer in Georgia, said the ruling was “reasonable and fair.” He said the appeals court “highlighted that Willis’ misconduct created a ‘smell of dishonesty’ and an appearance of impropriety that could only be remedied by her disqualification and her entire position.”
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“This decision puts an end to the politically motivated persecution of the next president of the United States,” Sado wrote in an email statement.
Representatives for Willis did not immediately respond to a text message seeking comment on the ruling.
Allegations that Willis took improper advantage of her romantic relationship with Wade led to a tumultuous two months in the case, with intimate details of Willis and Wade’s personal lives played out in court in mid-February. One defendant’s motion alleged that Willis and Wade were involved in an inappropriate romantic relationship and that Willis paid Wade large sums of money for his work and then profited when he paid for lavish vacations.
Willis and Wade acknowledged the relationship but said they didn’t start dating until the spring of 2022. They said Wade was hired in November 2021, and their romance ended in the summer of 2023. They also testified that they split travel and other costs roughly evenly, with Willis often paying expenses Or compensate Wade in cash.
Speaking at a historically black church in Atlanta shortly after the relationship allegations surfaced, Willis defended Wade’s qualifications and her leadership of her office. Defense lawyers said the letter included a series of inappropriate and offensive comments against the defendants and their legal team, poisoning any potential jurors against them.
The appeals court majority opinion, written by Justice Trenton Brown and joined by Justice Todd Markell, said that “the remedy that the trial court crafted to prevent the continuing appearance of wrongdoing did nothing to address the appearance of wrongdoing that existed at the times Attorney General Willis was a defendant.” Exercising its broad pre-trial discretion over who should be tried and what charges should be brought.
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Benjamin Land wrote that “the law does not support the majority’s finding.” He said that lower court judges have broad discretion to impose a remedy that suits the situation, and the Court of Appeal must respect that.
“We are here to ensure that the law is applied correctly and to correct harmful legal errors when we see them. It is not our job to discredit trial judges or substitute our judgment for theirs.
“Where, as here, the prosecutor has no actual conflict of interest and the trial court, based on the evidence presented to it, rejects the allegations of actual wrongdoing, we have no authority to overturn the trial court’s denial of the disqualification motion,” he said, holding that the majority opinion It goes against decades of precedent in Georgia.
The ruling by the appeals court panel means it is up to the Georgia Board of Attorneys General to find another prosecutor to take over the case, although that could be delayed if the state Supreme Court takes over the case. It may be difficult to find another prosecutor willing to take on this task given the vast resources needed to prosecute this sprawling and complex case. This person could continue on the path Willis took, decide to pursue only some charges or dismiss the case altogether.
Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, the lower court judge, ruled in March that there was no conflict of interest that should force Willis to leave the case. Trump and the others appealed that ruling.
McAfee wrote that the prosecution was “encumbered by the appearance of wrongdoing.” He said Willis could not remain on the case unless Wade left. The special prosecutor submitted his resignation hours later.
—Associated Press writers Eric Tucker in Washington and Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.
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