(Dan Tri) – Rumors about an office romance between chief prosecutor Fani Willis and prosecutor Nathan Wade could delay the criminal prosecution of Mr. Trump in Fulton County, Georgia, USA.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (left) and prosecutor Nathan Wade in Atlanta, Georgia in August 2023 (Photo: Reuters).
After nearly 3 years of pursuing the indictment of overturning the election of Donald Trump and his allies, chief prosecutor Willis may have to give up everything after rumors that she had feelings for Nathan Wade, the person Ms. Willis hired as a prosecutor.
This information arose in early January, when Michael Roman, co-defendant with Mr. Trump in the case in Fulton County, filed a request to remove Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade as prosecutors due to the two having an affair.
According to the application, Mr. Wade used part of the $650,000 he was paid while working for Ms. Willis to `cover` his partner’s vacation.
Both people have not confirmed or denied their relationship.
The possibility of Ms. Willis being removed as prosecutor risks causing a significant delay in Mr. Trump’s prosecution because it is unclear how long it will take to appoint a replacement.
`It could completely derail this entire process,` Anthony Michael Kreis, a law professor at Georgia State University, told the Guardian.
Mr. Nathan Wade during a hearing at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia in October 2023 (Photo: Getty).
Trusted person
Before being hired to work on the prosecution of Mr. Trump, Mr. Wade was a municipal judge and famous lawyer but had little prosecutorial experience.
Ms. Willis told the New York Times in 2022 that she only invited Mr. Wade to join the case after being turned down by more experienced lawyers.
Speaking to the New York Times, Ms. Willis said Mr. Wade was also hesitant at that time because he did not have much prosecution experience.
`I needed someone I could trust,` Ms. Willis told the New York Times.
Regardless of what happens legally, Mr. Trump will still use emotional accusations to attack Ms. Willis’s reputation.
`When will the great state of Georgia dismiss the false case against me and others? Election interference! This case is a fraud, just like prosecutor Fani Willis and her `mistress`
Mr. Trump at a Republican fundraising event in Columbia, South Carolina in August 2023 (Photo: Reuters).
The defendant’s time-buying trick
In fact, Ms. Willis was removed as a prosecutor once before after organizing a political fundraising event supporting Mr. Burt Jones’s opponent, who was a fake elector for Mr. Trump in 2020 and
Like other experts, Mr. Stephen Gillers, a legal ethics expert at New York University, said that Mr. Roman’s request did not list any acts that could cause the court to dismiss the entire indictment.
`The indictment will not be dismissed for this conduct,` Gillers said.
He also agreed that Ms. Willis’s behavior would likely not cause her to be removed as a prosecutor, and that Mr. Wade’s high hourly salary was not a reason for his disqualification.
`Every lawyer who charges an hourly rate takes that rate. Hourly payment is a fairly common practice across the country,` he said.
However, Mr. Gillers believes that Mr. Wade should proactively leave the prosecutor’s team to avoid causing distraction.
Clark Cunningham, a law professor and professional ethics expert, said that regardless of the judge’s decision, some parties will likely appeal to `buy time.`
Nick John