On Monday, a Georgia court postponed Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ (D) scheduled deposition in divorce proceedings involving a major prosecutor in the 2020 election fraud case against former President Trump.
Special prosecutor Nathan Wade’s divorce made headlines because one of Trump’s co-defendants, Michael Roman, accused Wade and Willis of having an inappropriate romantic involvement, rendering the district attorney’s office’s sweeping racketeering indictment “fatally defective.”
Andrea Hastings, a lawyer for Wade’s estranged wife, contended Monday that Willis has “unique knowledge” about Wade’s marriage and that her position as district attorney should not prevent her from disclosing that information to help divide the Wades’ marital assets.
Willis was subpoenaed earlier this month in Wade and Joycelyn’s ongoing divorce lawsuit, which started in 2021.
“She’s trying to hide under the shield of her position,” Hastings said of Willis.
Willis’ lawyer, Cinque Axam, said Monday that any information Willis acquires might also be shared by Wade.
“You’ve got two partners in the case, one who is alleged to have some extramarital affair with Ms. Willis,” Axam told the court. “If that is the case — if that is true, [Wade] has that information.”
“There are other means by which that information can be achieved in this case,” he went on to say.
Axam also stated that Willis does not share any bank accounts with Wade, nor does she control how he spends his money – “no matter where it comes from,” he claimed.
In court filings last week, Wade’s wife accused him of purchasing many flights for himself and Willis in the months leading up to the state’s 2020 election results.
The documents contain bank statements indicating trips to San Francisco and Miami while the Fulton County district attorney’s office investigated Trump and his associates.
Judge Henry Thompson refused to discharge Willis from future depositions, but he did temporarily suspend the requirement until Wade was deposed.
“Only after I hear what Mr. Wade has to say do I think I can make a determination of whether the proposed opponent has any unique knowledge about these issues,” Thompson said in a statement.
Thompson also agreed to unseal documents relating to Wade’s divorce after discovering that the original order sealing the case was improperly entered.
Ashleigh Merchant, Roman’s lawyer, brought the problem to the court’s attention. A group of media outlets also filed to get the records unsealed.
Roman, the defendant who first brought attention to the alleged relationship, has requested a judge to dismiss the case against him and exclude Willis, Wade, and the Fulton County district attorney’s office from future involvement in the matter.
The district attorney’s office has consistently declined to comment on the romance charges, stating that it will react in court documents.
Judge Scott McAfee, who is supervising Trump’s case, ordered Willis to respond to the claims in writing by February 2.
McAfee has also scheduled a hearing on the subject for February 15.