Judge slams Fani Willis’ ‘tremendous lapse in judgment’ in ruling on Trump election interference case
A Georgia judge slammed Fulton County DA Fani Willis for her “tremendous lapse in judgment” and “impropriety” over her affair with prosecutor Nathan Wade — but has allowed her to continue prosecuting the election fraud case against former President Donald Trump.
“The established record now highlights a significant appearance of impropriety that infects the current structure of the prosecution team,” Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee wrote of the revelations related to Willis and Wade’s months-long relationship.
McAfee found the defense ultimately failed to demonstrate Willis had a conflict of interest in the case by employing boyfriend Wade, but made a point of strongly criticizing her decision to get involved with the attorney.
“This finding is by no means an indication that the Court condones this tremendous lapse in judgment or the unprofessional manner of the District Attorney’s testimony during the evidentiary hearing,” the judge wrote in a particularly scathing section.
McAfee gave the state two options: Either Willis could step down from the case, or — the more likely scenario — Wade could remove himself as special prosecutor, which would allow the embattled DA to stay on.
Just hours after the ruling came out, Wade stepped down “in the interest of democracy, in dedication to the American public, and to move this case forward as quickly as possible,” according to his letter of resignation.
There are still “reasonable questions” about the timing of Willis and Wade’s affair that could not be settled by either party’s testimony, McAfee pointed out.
The defense — led by attorneys Ashleigh Merchant and Steve Sadow — charged that Willis became involved with Wade before she appointed him special prosecutor in the election case in 2021.
Text messages between Merchant and Terrence Bradley, Wade’s former law partner and one-time divorce attorney, even suggested the affair started as early as October 2019.
Former DA’s office employee Robin Yeartie — who claimed to have been one of Willis’ confidants — also got on the stand to say she had “no doubt” the pair were involved two years before Wade’s appointment.
Both Willis and Wade, however, maintained that they only became romantically involved in 2022.
McAfee was unimpressed by Bradley’s wishy-washy performance on the stand.
“His inconsistencies, demeanor, and generally non-responsive answers left far too brittle a foundation upon which to build any conclusions,” he wrote.
The allegations against Willis also included that she financially benefited from hiring Wade because he used some of the over $600,000 he earned in the position to take her on luxury vacations.
McAfee reasoned that the defense failed to fully demonstrate how Willis may have reaped benefits from her paramour’s job.
But the judge’s lack of confidence in Willis and Wade’s timelines “further underpin the finding of an appearance of impropriety and the need to make proportional efforts to cure it,” he wrote.
“An odor of mendacity remains,” McAfee admitted.
Part of the defense’s argument during the two days of testimony also included complaints about comments Willis made at a church shortly after the allegations about the affair came to light.
Willis’ tirade — in which she accused the defense of “playing the race card” against her and Wade — was “legally improper,” McAfee noted.
“Providing this type of public comment creates dangerous waters for the District Attorney to wade further into,” he cautioned.
Legal experts pointed out McAfee’s ruling reflected a line drawn between his legal opinion and his disappointment with Willis and Wade’s conduct.
“He does go out of his way to highlight that he believes she made bad decisions and that he believes her conduct on the witness stand was unbecoming of her position and that he believes that Mr. Wade lied in his divorce proceedings about the relationship,” Georgia-based defense attorney and former prosecutor Keith Johnson told The Post.
What to know about District Attorney Fani Willis' trial
- Fulton County, Ga., District Attorney Fani Willis is being accused of misusing state and federal funds, and also engaging in an “improper” relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade.
- Willis admitted to having a “personal relationship” with Wade, but said it didn’t become romantic until after 2022 due to the case against former President Donald Trump.
- Willis hired Wade to work on the Trump case and paid him $654,000 in 2022, according to Trump co-defendant Michael Roman.
- Trump and his co-defendants are looking to disqualify Willis from the case and to have all charges, centered around the state’s expansive anti-racketeering RICO law, dismissed.
- The defense has presented dozens of pings from Wade’s cellphone that placed it at Willis’ rented condo prior to 2022. A former friend of Willis, who owned the condo, has testified that she saw the two of them “hugging” and “kissing” in 2019.
- On March 15, a judge ruled Willis can stay on and prosecute the Georgia election interference case against Trump and his co-defendants for allegedly trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election — if Wade steps aside.
“The DA is firmly on notice that any additional mishaps and missteps will come back to haunt her severely,” Georgia State University law professor Anthony Kreis added.
“She really is now on heightened alert and she needs to button things up on her end, but at the end of the day, the case will go on,” he opined.
Shortly after the decision was released, Trump attorney Sadow argued that the court “did not afford appropriate significance to the prosecutorial misconduct of Willis and Wade, including the financial benefits, testifying untruthfully about when their personal relationship began.”
He vowed to continue to fight the ongoing prosecution against his client and the 14 remaining co-defendants.
Four co-defendants earlier reached plea deals.
