Lawyers and political pundits were quick to react to a damaging report published Friday that reveals Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and the man she named as special prosecutor in a case against former President Donald Trump had dozens of meet-ups at Willis’ home before he was hired on the case, contradicting testimony.
Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade testified earlier this month in an evidentiary hearing after Judge Scott McAfee found that it’s possible Willis and Wade could be “disqualified” in their case against Trump over a conflict of interest. Willis and Wade have admitted to a romantic affair, which included lavish vacations, but have both contended that the affair started after Wade was hired.
The newly revealed cell data shows Wade appeared to make 35 trips to Willis’ neighborhood in Hapeville, Georgia, before he was hired, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Willis and Wade also testified last week that the two never spent the night together at her home in Hapeville, but the cellphone data indicates that Wade came to her condo late at night and left early the next morning on two separate occasions.
“Stunning that Team Trump got their hands on this in the #FaniWillis case,” journalist Megyn Kelly reacted to the phone records. “More evidence that these two prosecutors lied, under oath. They’re looking at perjury charges and worse. Discipline from the Bar. And there is zero chance they can stay on this case. It’s DONE.”
Attorney and legal analyst Phil Holloway responded to the report, too.
“It’s not how many times Wade ‘visited’ #FaniWillis, it’s that they both testified he ‘never spent the night[.]’ ‘his phone left the East Cobb area just after midnight and arrived [at] the Dogwood address at 12:43 A.M on November 30, 2021. The phone remained there until 4:55am,'” Holloway posted.
Responding to the filing and the pair’s testimony, Holloway posed, “Is this wordplay and semantics? Or is this perjury? At worst it’s perjury, at best the testimony is misleading.”
“Either way the judge would be justified to find this to be part of a fraud on the court. This is very dangerous legal territory for these two,” he added. “They just keep digging.”
Legal expert Jonathan Turley responded on Friday, writing: “We are still awaiting a response from Willis so this is only one side. However, it could put Willis’s combative testimony into sharp relief as she declared ‘It’s a lie. It’s a lie‘ on the stand.”
“If the court believes that Willis and Wade lied on the stand, he could refer the matter for possible prosecution…by some other office. He could also consider a referral to the bar. Once again, the insistence on Willis and Wade that they remain in the case is troubling,” he continued.
“There is clearly a growing appearance of impropriety and possible conflicts of interest,” Turley added. “It is clear that they continuation in the matter is undermining not just the integrity of the case but that of their office. While many praised Willis for her combative testimony, it only magnified the concerns for many about the underlying personal motivations and interests in the hiring of Nathan Wade.”
Judge McAfee has scheduled a March 1 hearing on the potential disqualification of Willis and Wade.
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