Fani Willis' Bad Week Just Got Worse

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' week just got worse after Georgia state Representative Charlice Byrd introduced a resolution to impeach the federal prosecutor.

Willis has been making headlines ever since she took up the election subversion case against former president Donald Trump and 18 other co-defendants. In August 2023, the former president and his co-defendants were indicted in Georgia in connection to allegations that they conspired to overturn the state's 2020 presidential election results. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges in the case.

Byrd, a Republican and ally to Trump, shared a statement from Georgia's House of Representatives on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday. The statement announces that Bryd introduced impeachment articles against Willis, "claiming she has used her office not to pursue justice but for political gain."

The statement frames the Georgia election subversion case as Willis going after the former president and his alleged co-conspirators "for their constitutional right to question the integrity of the 2020 election count."

WIllis
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis at the Fulton County Courthouse on November 21, 2023, in Atlanta, Georgia. Willis' week just got worse after Georgia State Representative Charlice Byrd introduced a resolution to impeach the... Dennis Byron-Pool/Getty Images

"Willis also has come under scrutiny for possible conflict of interest in hiring a potential paramour in the case against Trump," the statement said.

Newsweek reached out to Bryd via online form and Willis via the DA's email for comment.

The Georgia DA has recently been in the spotlight for an alleged romantic relationship with a member of her staff. Earlier this month, a court filing submitted by Michael Roman, a former Trump campaign staffer and one of the co-defendants in the case, accused Willis of having an inappropriate romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, one of her three special prosecutors on the case.

The court documents did not provide any evidence of the alleged relationship but cited "sources with knowledge" to back up its claims. While Willis and Wade have not directly commented on the allegations, Willis defended her choices in hiring her team, calling all of them "superstars" while speaking before Atlanta's Big Bethel A.M.E Church congregation earlier this month.

A quote from Byrd in the Georgia House statement read: "Fani Willis has a laundry list of potential conflicts that make her unworthy and unfit to be the District Attorney in Fulton County ... Since Day One when she was elected, Fani Willis has embarrassed the criminal justice system in Fulton County and our state."

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, a Fulton County resident who identified himself as Derrick Blassingame aired out frustrations with the county commissioners' response to Willis' relationship allegations during a board meeting.

"I am done with most of your silence at the DA's apparent love affair with the special prosecutor and gross mismanagement of taxpayer dollars to pursue what appears to be a frivolous lawsuit based off of partisan politics," Blassingame told the board.

Update 1/26/24, 1:35 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.

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