On March 6, Ashleigh Merchant, the lawyer who spearheaded the effort to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from the Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump, briefed state lawmakers on her investigation into Willis’ romantic relationship with a special prosecutor and why she believes it creates a conflict of interest.
Former President Donald Trump asked a Georgia judge if he may appeal the decision to retain Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in the criminal case against him for allegedly seeking to overthrow the 2020 election.
On Friday, Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis may remain on the case after prosecutor Nathan Wade resigned after it was revealed that Willis and Wade were romantically involved.
Trump and some of his co-defendants claim that hiring Wade benefited Willis because Wade paid for dates, trips, and dinners. McAfee, on the other hand, found no evidence to substantiate the conflict of interest and called Willis’s relationship with Wade a “tremendous lapse in judgment.”
According to Reuters, lawyers for Trump and his co-defendants stated in the filing that disqualifying Willis is “of the utmost importance to this case.”
McAfee stated that barring Willis from the lawsuit was unnecessary when “a less drastic and sufficiently remedial option is available,” such as Wade’s resignation.
If Trump is successful in appealing the judge’s decision, he may be able to prolong the lawsuit, which he is attempting to do while running for president this year.
Willis charged Trump and his co-defendants in August with conspiring to illegally alter the 2020 election. The charge is Trump’s fourth criminal indictment.