Topline
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis must be disqualified from overseeing the criminal case in Georgia against President-elect Donald Trump and his allies, a state appeals court ruled Thursday, delivering a win to Trump and his allies as it reversed a lower court decision that kept Willis on the case—even as judges still declined to throw out the case.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis looks on during a hearing on March 1 in Atlanta, … [+] Georgia.
Key Facts
Trump and other allies indicted in Georgia asked an appeals court to determine whether Willis should be disqualified from the case due to her romantic relationship with prosecutor Nathan Wade, after a lower judge ruled Wade had to leave the case but Willis could continue her prosecution.
The appeals court ruled Willis must be disqualified, arguing her relationship with Wade gave the “appearance of impropriety” and “no other remedy” besides disqualifying her “will suffice to restore public confidence in the integrity of these proceedings.”
It did not throw out the case entirely, however, ruling against the defendants’ motion to dismiss the charges due to Willis’ alleged impropriety.
While the lower court ruled Willis could stay on the case as long as Wade left, the appeals court said that solution “did nothing to address the appearance of impropriety” regarding the steps Willis has already taken in the case, like deciding what charges to bring.
Willis’ actions aren’t enough for the appeals court to impose the “extreme sanction” of throwing out the case entirely, the judges ruled, upholding the lower court’s decision that her relationship with Wade didn’t violate the defendants’ due process rights at all.
The Fulton County District Attorney’s office informed the court Thursday it will appeal the ruling to the Georgia Supreme Court, while Trump’s lawyer Steve Sadow said in a statement the court’s “well-reasoned and just decision … puts an end to a politically motivated persecution of the next President of the United States.”
What To Watch For
It’s unclear how long it will take Willis’ appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court to play out, or how the court will rule. If it upholds Willis’ disqualification, the Fulton County District Attorney’s office will no longer be able to handle the case against Trump and his allies at all, the appeals court ruled, arguing that Willis no longer being able to lead the case also means that the lower-ranking prosecutors in her office can’t be on it at all. Finding a replacement will be up to the executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of the State of Georgia, and it’s unclear how long that could take. The Council’s director, Pete Skandalakis, told CNN in February that appointing a replacement will require finding “somebody with the resources and experience” necessary for handling such a complex case. The New York Times notes Democratic-appointed prosecutors in Georgia’s DeKalb or Cobb counties could likely be best equipped to take up the case, though Lawfare notes Skandalakis could also decline to appoint a new prosecutor and end the case altogether. While the charges against Trump were already expected to be delayed until he leaves office—if they’re not thrown out before then—the process means that the trials against Trump’s co-defendants, including ex-attorney Rudy Giuliani and former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, will now likely be significantly delayed, if they still take place at all.
What Happens To Trump’s Georgia Charges?
Trump is separately trying to dismiss his indictment in Georgia due to his presidential election, with his lawyers arguing in a December filing that the appeals court should tell the lower court to dismiss the charges against him. The appeals court did not rule on that request Thursday, only declining to dismiss the charges due to Willis’ alleged impropriety. It’s unclear if the indictment against Trump will ultimately survive, however, and even if the charges stay in place, he’s still unlikely to go to trial until he leaves office in 2029.
Key Background
Willis indicted Trump and his allies in August 2023 on state racketeering and other felony charges, alleging the group participated in a wide-ranging conspiracy trying to overturn the 2020 election results. (Trump and his remaining co-defendants have pleaded not guilty, though a few have taken plea deals.) While prosecutors wanted the case to go to trial in August of this year, the case has been paused as Trump and his co-defendants have sought to disqualify Willis over her relationship with Wade. Willis and Wade testified their romantic relationship only began after Wade was hired to serve as the lead prosecutor on Willis’ team, though other witness testimony has challenged that, and they testified their relationship had ended before Trump and his allies were formally indicted. Willis has denied any wrongdoing, saying in a court filing that allegations she acted inappropriately were “fantastical theories and rank speculation.” She also denied allegations of financially benefiting from her relationship with Wade, testifying they split expenses on vacations they took together. Trump and his co-defendants’ challenge of Willis’ leadership comes as the ex-presidents and other Republicans had strongly criticized the Democratic prosecutor in the wake of her targeting Trump and his allies, and are part of broader attacks Trump has levied against prosecutors who have brought charges against him. The ruling disqualifying Willis also comes as the criminal cases against Trump have broadly fallen apart in the wake of his election, with his federal charges getting dismissed and his sentencing in Manhattan being indefinitely postponed.
Further Reading
ForbesHow All Of Trump’s Criminal Cases Fell Apart—As Jack Smith Drops Federal ChargesBy Alison DurkeeForbesTrump Asks For Georgia Criminal Charges To Be Thrown OutBy Alison Durkee
ForbesFani Willis Could Be Disqualified Today—Here’s What Would Happen NextBy Alison Durkee
