Atlanta Trump Prosecutor Accused Of Secret, Disqualifying Romance With DA Fani Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis hired her secret lover to serve as special prosecutor in the Georgia racketeering case against Donald Trump and 18 other defendants, according to a Monday filing on behalf of Mike Roman, a defendant who led election day operations for the 2020 Trump campaign: 

“[T]he district attorney and the special prosecutor have been engaged in an improper, clandestine personal relationship during the pendency of this case, which has resulted in the special prosecutor, and, in turn, the district attorney, profiting significantly from this prosecution at the expense of the taxpayers.”

The prosecutor is Nathan Wade, a private attorney in the midst of a divorce who “has little to no experience trying felony cases, much less complex RICO actions,” according to the 127-page filing which seeks to have the charges against Roman dropped and both Willis and Wade disqualified from further participation in the case.  

Fani Willis hired Nathan Wade at a steep premium to what she was paying other prosecutors in her office, the filing alleges (Atlanta News First)

According to the complaint, Wade has raked in at least $653,000 and upwards of $1 million for handling the high-profile case. By virtue of their relationship, that pile of taxpayer money benefits Willis, as they’ve traveled together to Florida, the Caribbean and Napa Valley, California, adding that Wade has also bought tickets for the pair to travel on Norwegian and Royal Caribbean cruise ships. 

In addition to his $250 hourly rate, Wade has also billed Fulton County for thousands of dollars in air travel and hotel stays, according to invoices attached to the filing. He categorized them as interview and research trips.  

The filing also alleges that Willis contracted with Wade contract without proper approval, as such a move requires a vote by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners. Roman’s lawyer, Ashleigh Merchant tells the Wall Street Journal her search of board meeting minutes found no indication his appointment was ever discussed, much less voted upon.

Attorney Ashleigh Merchant filed the motion seeking Willis and Wade’s disqualification and the dropping of charges against Mike Roman

The timing of the transaction was rich: Wade filed for divorce the very day after his first contract with Willis began. The divorce is still pending, and Wade managed to have the proceedings sealed — for now. Merchant is asking for them to be unsealed.

Monday’s filing sums up the shadiness of the dealings nicely: 

On the day before Wade filed for divorce, [Willis] entered into an agreement to pay Wade far above what any other prosecutor in her office was being paid, and she hid this agreement from Fulton County, despite Wade being the single biggest expenditure in her office for professional service contractors for both 2022 and 2023.   

…

Wade is being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to prosecute this case on her behalf. In turn, Wade is taking Willis on, and paying for vacations across the world with money he is being paid by the Fulton County taxpayers and authorized solely by Willis.

“It’s a bad look and it’s potentially criminal—again, assuming everything is true,” former Georgia prosecutor Chris Timmons tells the Journal. However, while Willis’s procurement of Wade’s services may have been illegal, Timmons doubts it would affect the indictment. 

Willis has yet to comment on the accusations, and a spokesman says a response will come “via a filing with the court.” The filing contains plenty of documentation about Wade’s hiring and billings, but no evidence of the romantic relationship, beyond citing “sources close” to the couple.   

Four defendants have pleaded guilty in the Fulton County case that alleges a conspiracy to interfere with the 2020 presidential election. Roman faces seven charges, including conspiracy to commit forgery, conspiracy to file false documents and racketeering. 

And just when you thought it all couldn’t get any shadier, there’s also this gem in the heap of exhibits attached to the filing…

It literally says “conf with White House Counsel” in May of 2022

This is Fulton DA Fani Willis lead prosecutor in the Trump case billing taxpayers $2000 to talk to Joe Biden’s White House about prosecuting Biden’s political opponent pic.twitter.com/oCGjx7j3bA

— Phil Holloway ✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) January 9, 2024