Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has defended her hiring of private attorney Nathan Wade as lead prosecutor in the election fraud case against former President Donald Trump and 14 others, suggesting that those who have questioned his ability are being unfair and possibly racist.
Willis made her remarks Sunday at the Big Bethel A.M.E. Church in Atlanta, six days after one of Trump’s 14 remaining co-defendants accused her of having an improper romantic relationship with Wade that was serious enough to have them both thrown off the case.
Without mentioning him by name, Willis said Wade was not only a “great friend” but an experienced and well-respected lawyer with the “impeccable” credentials needed to be a special prosecutor overseeing the sprawling racketeering case.
Describing each one as a “superstar,” she asked, “Isn’t it them playing the race card when they only question one?”
“The Black man I chose has been a judge more than 10 years, run a private practice more than 20, represented businesses in civil litigation − I ain’t done y’all,” Willis said. “Served as a prosecutor, a criminal defense lawyer, special assistant attorney general.”
But Willis did not address some of the more salacious accusations in the motion filed last Monday by former Trump campaign official Michael Roman.
Roman’s motion, filed by Atlanta lawyer Ashleigh Merchant, also accused Wade of lacking the “relevant experience” needed to prosecute a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, case like the one against him, Trump and others.
Roman also accused Wade of using some of that money to finance lavish vacations with Willis, including trips to California wine country and Florida and excursions on Caribbean cruises.
Roman offered no specific proof to back up any of the allegations in the court motion, which seeks to disqualify Willis, Wade and the entire Fulton County District Attorney’s Office. Specifically, he accused Willis of acting to “defraud the public of honest services” by personally benefiting from the undisclosed conflict of interest.
Wade hasn’t spoken publicly in response to the allegations, even when they came up in a previously scheduled court hearing in the case Friday that he attended. Willis has said through a spokesperson that she will address the allegations via the court process.
In the court hearing Friday, Superior Judge Scott McAfee said he would take up the question next month after Willis responds.
In the meantime, the accusations have prompted attacks on Willis by Trump, some GOP lawmakers in Congress and other critics who say it’s proof that Democratic politicians and prosecutors are engaging in a witch hunt against the former president.
On Monday night, Merchant pushed back on Willis’ defense, telling USA TODAY that the accusations against Wade have “nothing to do with the color of his skin.”
The biggest difference between the two other special prosecutors and Wade, she said, “is that Ms. Willis is not in a relationship with them and did not take vacations paid for by” them.
Chris Timmons, a longtime former Georgia state prosecutor and RICO and jury trial expert, said Willis’ failure to address the more serious allegations in the motion could raise more questions than answers about whether her hiring of Wade was justified and why she picked him for such a high-profile assignment.
