Willis told the Georgia Court of Appeals in a filing Monday it should reject defendants’ continued efforts to disqualify her, noting that Judge Scott McAfee found “the evidence insufficient to establish any actual conflict of interest and declined to dismiss the indictment.” McAfee’s March ruling allowed Willis to remain on the case if special prosecutor Nathan Wade, who she was in a relationship with and was accused of financially benefiting from appointing, stepped down.

Willis argued Monday the appeal only reflects defendants’ “dissatisfaction” with the outcome based on “proper application of well-established law to the facts.”

“Days of evidence and testimony failed to disclose anything like a calculated pre-trial plan designed to prejudice the defendants or secure their convictions,” the filing states. “The applicants have not identified any public statement injecting the District Attorney’s personal belief as to the defendants’ guilt or appealing to the public weighing of evidence.”

NEW: The Fulton County district attorney's office asks the Georgia Court of Appeals to refuse to consider Trump's appeal of Judge McAfee's decision not to disqualify Fani Willis.

Read the filing: https://t.co/jycHNCshCN

— Anna Bower (@AnnaBower) April 8, 2024

While McAfee did not find the defendants were able to prove an “actual” conflict of interest, he said the record highlighted “a significant appearance of impropriety.” He said there were “reasonable questions” about the truthfulness of Willis’ and Wade’s testimony about the timing of their relationship.

McAfee granted the defendants a certificate of review late March enabling them to appeal his ruling.

Willis argued that the appeal should be rejected because McAfee made “no factual finding of false testimony or a false affidavit.”

“In requesting a contrary finding on this issue, the applicants would have this Court invade the province of the trial court and make additional factual findings,” the filing said. “This it cannot do.”

Her filing also defended Willis’ “church speech” in January, where she suggested Nathan Wade was being attacked because of his race and falsely claimed she was paying all three special prosecutors the same amount.

“Insofar as the District Attorney delivered a speech at a local church, the trial court concluded the speech did not ‘cross the line’ because it failed to name any defendant; it did not disclose sensitive or confidential evidence; it did not address the merits of the indicted offenses to move the trial to the court of public opinion; and further, the case is too far removed from jury selection for any actual prejudice or improper effect on the jury pool to actualize,” she wrote.

McAfee’s ruling stated the speech was “legally improper” and “creates dangerous waters for the District Attorney to wade further into,” though he found it did not require disqualification.

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Bradley is Nathan Wade’s former law partner, who left the firm in 2022. The judge ordered him to testify last week when his claim of attorney-client privilege fell apart.

Bradley was caught lying when attorney Ashleigh Merchant sent his texts to the computer before him as he testified. The texts proved he said plenty about their relationship, which he texted began in 2019.

When caught red-handed, he said, “Oh, dang,” giving himself away like the dog caught eating the birthday cake. Later, he came up with the fantastical excuse that he was only “speculating” when he gave out those details.

Unfortunately for the trio of potential liars, a new witness has come forward, and if he’s telling the truth, they are proven to be perjurers.

A waiter called Meghan Kelly and said he served Bradley and Wade five weeks ago, which means Bradley lied when he said he hadn’t spoken with Wade in two years. If true, he lied under oath.

On Tuesday, Terrence Bradley testified that he hadn’t spoken to Wade in two years. The waiter can be checked. A third person was present.

Watch:

EXCLUSIVE: Waiter Reveals He Saw Nathan Wade with Terrance Bradley Just Weeks Ago at Restaurant

Reporting on this new alleged witness to the Fani Willis story – from today's @MegynKellyShow: pic.twitter.com/MeSDbHYANd

— The Megyn Kelly Show (@MegynKellyShow) March 1, 2024

The attorney for a Trump co-defendant filed a motion Monday alleging Willis not only hired the man she was romantically involved with, Nathan Wade, as special prosecutor in her racketeering case against Trump, but also signed off on “lucrative” compensation that exceeded her own salary, which Wade in turn used to finance cruises and vacations he took with Willis. The allegations are serious and could potentially undermine the case, legal experts told the DCNF.

“The motion paints a picture of a prosecution that has a structural problem,” Georgia-based criminal defense attorney and legal analyst Philip Holloway told the DCNF. “It’s basically built upon using a special prosecutor who, if this turns out to be true, was not appointed and hired, if you will, in the correct legal way.”

Willis, who allegedly did not obtain permission from Fulton County to hire a special prosecutor, used funds she lobbied for to clear a backlog of cases that stacked up during Covid to contract with Wade, according to the filing made on behalf of co-defendant Michael Roman.

“When you put all this together, it amounts to a bad faith use of her authority as district attorney,” Holloway told the Daily Caller News Foundation, adding this could culminate in a due process violation that “will justify not only disqualifying her, but potentially having the entire case dismissed.”

Regardless, Holloway said it could take months for the process to play out and “certainly is going to kick the case out, to a minimum, sometime in 2025.”

Wade has been paid nearly $1,000,000 in legal fees since he was appointed, according to the motion.

The motion alleges the couple traveled to such places as Napa Valley, California, Florida and the Caribbean. Wade also allegedly “purchased tickets for both of them to travel on both the [Norwegian] and Royal Caribbean cruise lines.”

“If true, this would not only be a gross display of unethical conduct and horrific professional judgment, but it would also subject Ms. Willis to potential criminal charges of receiving kickbacks from a paid contractor and theft of honest services,” John Malcolm, vice president for the Heritage Foundation’s Institute for Constitutional Government and former deputy assistant attorney general in the DOJ’s Criminal Division, told the DCNF. “If the court’s inquiry substantiates these allegations, the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office should be disqualified from continuing its involvement in the case and the matter should be referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for possible prosecution and to the Georgia Bar for disciplinary proceedings.”

Emory University School of Law Professor Jonathan Nash told the DCNF that it is “premature to say where this might lead.”

“For one thing, the motion provides no actual evidence of either an inappropriate personal relationship between Willis and Wade, or any improper financial relationship,” he said.

“The issues raised in Michael Roman’s motion are serious, and Scott McAfee – the Fulton County Superior Court Judge assigned to the case – should conduct a thorough inquiry,” Malcolm said.

The filing does not provide concrete evidence, instead stating that “sources close to both the special prosecutor and the district attorney have confirmed they had an ongoing, personal relationship.” Ashleigh Merchant, Roman’s lawyer, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that she reviewed the case file for Wade’s divorce proceedings, which the motion explains were later sealed.

A spokesperson for Willis told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Monday that the district attorney will answer the allegations “through appropriate court filings.”

Ultimately, the allegations necessitate a hearing before McAfee, where Merchant will have to prove the motion’s claims, Holloway said. “I’ve known this lawyer for at least 20 years, and she is known to be very thorough,” he told the DCNF.

Willis’ personal entanglements are just one piece of the puzzle. Wade’s billing statements included in the motion reference two meetings with Biden’s White House before the indictment.

If nothing else, this adds “gasoline to the fire” accusing Willis of prosecuting the former president for partisan reasons, Holloway told the DCNF.

The House Judiciary Committee launched an investigation into Willis in August to determine whether she coordinated with Biden’s Department of Justice when bringing charges against Trump. Willis shot back in a September letter to Chairman Jim Jordan that his intrusion into Georgia’s sovereignty is “offensive and will not stand,” claiming he “lack[s] a basic understanding of the law.”

“We are aware of these damning allegations and are looking into all avenues as to what comes next,” Russell Dye, spokesperson for Jordan, told the DCNF.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].