United States – Donald Trump’s lawyer pleaded with a Georgian judge to disqualify the lead prosecutor who accused his client of interference in the elections on the basis that she lied about her extramarital relationship with her deputy.
Questioning the Prosecutor’s Integrity
Steve Sadow, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ lawyer, said that her speaking under the oath that her relationship with the attorney Nathan Wade did not begin until after she hired him is so not credible.
“Once you have the appearance of impropriety … the law in Georgia is clear: That’s enough to disqualify,” Sadow told Judge Scott McAfee.
Former President Trump and the others are charged with illegally pressing Georgia officials to reverse his defeat to President Joe Biden in the state’s 2020 election.
Trump and the other fourteen defendants have entered a not-guilty plea.
If Trump and his allies win the case, the slow appellate process could further delay the cumbersome racketeering case that already faces the possibility of a long trial.
The Willis disqualification would definitely not terminate the case because she would most likely be replaced with a different district attorney.
Nevertheless, the process would slow down significantly, and the new prosecutor might decide to reduce or even drop the charges.
The final heard arguments against McAfee were Friday, and this was preceded by a series of hearings where Willis confessed to having an affair with Conrad but accused defense lawyers of lying about the situation and the timing.
The affair was first disclosed in a January filing of a lawyer for Michael Roman, who claimed that it posed a conflict of interest and interfered with the improper enrichment of Wade as it was given to him.
Wade and Willis said the relationship started after Wade was hired, and the prosecutors argue it did not damage the defendants either way.
On the defense counsel’s side, prosecutors have been accused of lying in court and say that they started dating well before Wade started to work for them. In papers of last week’s filing, Trump’s lawyer had already disclosed the fact of getting location data from Wade’s cellphone indicating numerous late-night trips to Willis’ home before she made the appointment.
Additional Legal Challenges for Trump
His trial is scheduled on March 25 in New York in the so-called campaign finance case that alleges he made false statements to the Federal Election Committee in an attempt to get hush money to a porn star by violating federal laws, which could be the only case brought against him before the November elections.
Trump is also facing indictment on election fraud charges in Washington DC, but the case is pending until the U.S. Supreme Court makes a ruling on whether one is immune from criminal prosecution while still holding the office of the President.
He is indicted also in Florida for his action on classified documents when he exits the office. The judge presiding upon said case was hearing on Friday Trump’s motion to move his case to May 20.
Trump denied any wrongdoing
Trump kept insisting that he had nothing to do with them and that they were deliberately put against him by political intriguers who merely wanted to stop him from getting into office.
Then, if he is the President, Trump may put his presidential powers into effect and shut down both cases as they were brought in the district court.
Furthermore, he wouldn’t be in the position to hinder the Georgia case as it was being brought forth in the state courts.