Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will not recuse herself from the investigation into former President Donald Trump‘s efforts to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election despite calls from conservatives to step back from the case over an alleged relationship with one of the special prosecutors.
Willis’s decision to stay stems from her concerns that leaving the case would essentially end the investigation into Trump, sources close to the district attorney’s office told CNN. Her investigation is one of four criminal cases against the former president that handed him 91 felony charges, several extending from his efforts to prevent Joe Biden from becoming president.
The district attorney has faced severe backlash following allegations she benefitted financially from a romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, the lead prosecutor on the Trump case. While both outside parties and Trump’s team have called on Willis to recuse herself from the investigation, the sources said she is preparing to counter arguments by arguing that defense attorneys seeking to remove her are wrong on the law.
Last week, Trump’s legal team filed a motion to dismiss the indictment against him and disqualify Fulton County prosecutors. Earlier this month, co-defendant Mike Roman filed a motion on Jan. 8 first detailing the alleged relationship between Willis and Wade, claiming that “taxpayer monies were used by Wade to take the DA on lavish vacations.”
The motion detailed that Wade allegedly paid for vacations for himself and Willis, and it argued that Wade had been paid more than $650,000 by Willis since 2021 despite having little experience on such a high-profile case. Such accusations have caused the Georgia Senate to approve an investigative committee to look into Willis’s conduct.
Despite the pushback, Willis has no plans to go anywhere. She has until Friday to provide written responses to Roman’s accusations, with Judge Scott McAfee preparing to hear arguments and evidence on the allegations on Feb. 15. Though the odds of Willis taking the stand are slim, sources said it is not out of the question.
Willis was subpoenaed to testify in Wade’s divorce case, but Wade and his ex-wife temporarily settled the case on Tuesday, saving the district attorney from having to provide some, if any, details about her alleged relationship with the special prosecutor. Wade was scheduled to testify on Wednesday over allegations that he hid income from his estranged wife, but that testimony will no longer take place due to the settlement.
Credit card charges that surfaced during Wade’s divorce proceedings add details to the alleged affair between himself and Willis. Payment records show Wade paid for two plane tickets for Willis to Miami and San Francisco. However, there has been no other evidence provided to show anything illegal or improper occurred.
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Former DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James told CNN he does not think Willis broke any laws.
“I think a lot of what I’ve read is more of a distraction and not legally substantive,” James said. “Having an alleged affair with a subordinate, I don’t really know how that has anything to do with the case or the facts, or the evidence, or whether Donald J. Trump or any of these other individuals have done what’s in the indictment.”
