Georgia appeals court sets tentative Oct. 4 date to hear Trump appeal of Fani Willis ruling

Washington – The Georgia Court of Appeals has tentatively set arguments for Oct. 4 in an attempt by former President Donald Trump and his allies to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her office from the case involving an alleged effort to overturn the Georgia 2020 presidential election results. election.

The appeals court said in May it would review a decision from Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who allowed Willis to continue prosecuting the case against Trump. Arguments will be heard by judges Trenton Brown, Todd Markle and Benjamin Land.

The former president and eight of his co-defendants in the sprawling racketeering case brought by Willis’ office pushed for her to be disqualified because of a personal relationship she had with special prosecutor Nathan Wade. But McAfee denied the offer and said Willis and her office could continue work on the case if Wade withdrew, which he did. Trump and a group of his co-defendants then appealed the decision.

The proceedings before the Georgia Court of Appeals will delay the start of any trial and no date has been set for its start.

Steve Sadow, Trump’s lawyer in the Georgia case, confirmed that oral arguments before the appeals court are tentatively scheduled for October 4.

“We look forward to presenting arguments before Judges Brown, Markel and Land as to why this case should be dismissed and Fulton County District Attorney Willis should be disqualified for the trial court’s recognized ‘smell of lies’ misconduct, in violation of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct,” he said in a statement.

The former president faces 10 charges in Georgia, where he and more than a dozen of his allies were charged in what prosecutors allege was an illegal scheme to overturn the state’s 2020 election results. Trump and all 18 of his initial co-defendants have pleaded not guilty, although four later accepted plea agreements.

The lawsuit was halted earlier this year after one of those co-defendants, GOP operative Michael Roman, claimed Willis and Wade had an inappropriate romantic relationship and alleged that Willis benefited financially from it.

Roman claimed the relationship began before Wade was hired in November 2021 to work on the case involving Trump, and he sought to have Willis and his office disqualified and the charges dismissed. Trump and seven others joined Roman’s motion claiming the charge was invalid and unconstitutional.

Willis and Wade admitted they were romantically involvedbut said their relationship began after Wade was brought into the investigation and ended in the summer of 2023. Both also denied that Willis benefited financially from the relationship and said they shared costs associated with trips they took together.

McAfee issued its decision rejecting the disqualification attempt in mid-March and issued a scathing rebuke of Willis’ conduct. The judge said that although he was unable to conclusively determine when the prosecutors’ relationship became romantic, “an odor of deceit remains.” He criticized Willis for a “tremendous lapse in judgement”.

The appeal of the disqualification order opened the door for the Public Prosecutor’s Office to also appeal another recent decision without obtaining McAfee’s approval, in a maneuver known as a cross-appeal. In early March, McAfee dismissed six charges against the former president and five other co-defendants, concluding that the indictment “contains all the essential elements of the crimes”, but does not “allege sufficient details about the nature of their practice”. Of the six charges dismissed, Trump was charged with three.

Trump tried to dismiss the indictment for several reasons, including the fact that he is absolutely immune from prosecution and that the charges violate the First Amendment. But McAfee in April denied the former president’s request dismiss the charges on the grounds of free speech, which Trump also appealed.