The potential ethical implications of an alleged romantic relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and prosecutor Nathan Wade should have no real bearing on Donald Trump's election fraud cause in Georgia, legal experts tell Newsweek.
Trump and 14 co-defendants face criminal racketeering charges for allegedly attempting to overturn Georgia's electoral results in the 2020 election won by Joe Biden. Another four individuals were indicted but pleaded guilty and said they'd cooperate with prosecutors. Trump and the remaining defendants have pleaded not guilty and denied the allegations.
Willis has faced new scrutiny following reports that Wade, now the case's special prosecutor, has made over $650,000 in the role of prosecuting the Republican Party's current presidential front-runner and his cohorts, according to The Washington Post.
Last week, former Trump staffer Michael Roman, who faces seven charges in Georgia, filed a lawsuit presented without tangible evidence alleging that Willis "engaged in a personal, romantic relationship" with Wade and "personally benefited from" the alleged affair, meaning she acted "to defraud the public of honest services."
He has requested a case dismissal due to the "clandestine personal relationship during the pendency of this case."
The lawsuit also alleges that Willis and Wade—whose political affiliation remains unknown— vacationed together in Napa Valley and the Caribbean and that he subsidized the trips. It also mentions that one day after Wade filed for divorce from his wife in November 2021, he was hired as an outside prosecutor to help litigate the Georgia election case.
Former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade told Newsweek that while the veracity of the allegations remains to be determined, the legal impact on Trump and the remaining co-defendants is not likely to change.
"If Willis paid Wade more than an appropriate rate, or if she failed to disclose a personal relationship under some circumstance where she was required to do so, that could create an ethical issue for Willis, but that would be dealt with by state or county officials or the state bar," McQuade said, adding that there are no grounds for dismissal due to the allegations being completely separate from the merits of the RICO case.
McQuade added: "In fact, it would be improper for a jury to even hear about it under the rules of evidence. The only potential damage to the case is that adverse publicity could taint the potential jury pool. The judge will have to be careful in jury selection to weed out anyone who might have heard these allegations and be influenced by them."
Willis partially addressed the allegations on Sunday at the Big Bethel AME Church in Atlanta, Georgia, though never went into full detail and did not defend or deny them. She seemed to insinuate that race played a role in the new allegations.
"They only attack one," Willis told the gathered churchgoers. "I hired one white woman: a good personal friend and great lawyer, a superstar, I tell you. I hired one white man: brilliant, my friend, and a great lawyer. And I hired one Black man, another superstar, a great friend, and a great lawyer."
Newsweek reached out to Willis' office for comment.
Prior to becoming the lead prosecutor of this major case, Wade served as a municipal judge in Cobb County, primarily dealing with traffic tickets, and ran a private practice focusing on family law and contract disputes.
The purported intimacy between Willis and Wade makes for "salacious" headlines" and fodder for new legal filings, former federal prosecutor Michael McAuliffe told Newsweek, though he says that such allegations likely do not violate any substantive or procedural right the defendants have in their criminal cases.
"Why Mr. Wade was chosen as a prosecutor in the case isn't something the defendants have a right to know or have the ability to change," McAuliffe said. "Any relationship issue that exists amongst the prosecutorial team would not be the subject of examination or questions in front of a jury pool or the actual jury in a trial of the case."
If the relationship is even subject to a state or bar review remains unclear, he added.
"In general, the subject of a relationship, even if established, might be an embarrassment and very bad optics, but it's the prosecutors' conduct and actions in the actual case––with discovery, motions, witness interviews, etc.––that should be of interest to the defendants, not whether any members of the prosecutor team are dating," McAuliffe said.
Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told Newsweek that while the allegations should have no real bearing on the Georgia election case, they may have broader political and ethical implications.
"[Willis] can get voted out of office or face ethics violations if she didn't disclose gifts she received," Rahmani said. "Criminal charges are less likely because they require Willis to knowingly participate in a kickback scheme."
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Nick Mordowanec is a Newsweek reporter based in Michigan. His focus is reporting on Ukraine and Russia, along with social ... Read more
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