Trump Georgia case: Judge allows appeal of ruling that kept DA Fani Willis on case

ATLANTA — A Georgia judge has granted a request from defense attorneys seeking to appeal his decision to allow Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to stay on the case against former President Donald Trump after she was accused of misconduct, according to WSB-TV.

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Last week, Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis could remain on the case only if special prosecutor Nathan Wade resigned. Defense attorneys had accused the pair of having an inappropriate romantic relationship that created a conflict of interest when Willis hired Wade into his role.

Wade submitted his resignation on Friday, hours after McAfee’s ruling came down.

On Wednesday, WSB obtained a court filing signed by McAfee that allowed for a review of his decision.

He declined to pause enforcement of his ruling as the review takes place.

“The Court intends to continue addressing the many other unrelated pending pretrial motions, regardless of whether the petition is granted within 45 days of filing, and even if any subsequent appeal is expedited by the appellate court,” he wrote.

Attorneys for Trump and several of the people charged alongside him for allegedly racketeering to keep the former president in power after his 2020 election loss filed an appeal earlier this week, according to WSB. In a court filing, they said that Wade’s resignation “is insufficient to cure the appearance of impropriety the court has determined exists.”

Defense attorneys had accused Willis of benefiting financially from her decision to hire Wade and asked McAfee to remove them from the case.

In hearings last month, a former friend and co-worker of Willis’ testified that her relationship with Wade began in 2019, a claim the prosecutors denied. Defense attorneys pointed to records that showed that Wade paid travel expenses for Willis using his business card to show that she got financial benefits from her decision to hire him. Both Wade and Willis testified that she paid him back in cash and that they split expenses roughly evenly.

Last week, McAfee ruled that defense attorneys failed to show that Wade and Willis divided expenses inappropriately and that, ultimately, “financial gain flowing from her relationship with Wade was not a motivating factor on the part of the District Attorney to indict and prosecute this case.”

He added that Wade and Willis demonstrated a “tremendous lack of judgment” but said, “Georgia law does not permit the finding of an actual conflict for simply making bad choices — even repeatedly — and it is the trial court’s duty to confine itself to the relevant issues and applicable law properly brought before it.”

Last year, a grand jury indicted Trump and 18 others on charges that they conspired to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

Four people — bail bondsman Scott Hall and attorneys Sidney Powell, Kenneth Chesebro and Jenna Ellis — have pleaded guilty to charges. The remaining defendants, including Trump, have denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.

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Fulton County Court holds Fani Willis misconduct hearing ATLANTA, GA - FEBRUARY 15: Fulton County Superior Judge Scott McAfee looks on during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on February 15, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. Judge Scott McAfee is hearing testimony as to whether DA Fanni Willis and Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade should be disqualified from the case for allegedly lying about a personal relationship. (Photo by Alyssa Pointer-Pool/Getty Images) (Pool/Getty Images)

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