Trump Prosecutor Nathan Wade Settles Divorce, Avoids Having to Testify About Relationship With Fani Willis

Nathan Wade, Trump special prosecutor, has reached a divorce settlement, likely avoiding testimony about his alleged affair with Fulton County DA Fani Willis.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Fulton County District Attorney Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade (R) at a press conference in the Fulton County Government Center after a grand jury voted to indict former President Donald Trump and 18 others, in Atlanta on Aug. 14, 2023. Christian Monterrosa/AFP via Getty Images

Trump special prosecutor Nathan Wade has reached a temporary divorce settlement with his estranged wife and so will likely avoid having to testify in court about his alleged affair with his boss, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

Mr. Wade, the Atlanta special prosecutor who was hired by Ms. Wills and brought election interference charges against former President Donald Trump in Georgia, on Tuesday reached a divorce settlement with his wife, Jocelyn Wade, per court documents viewed by The Epoch Times.

Cobb County Superior Court Judge Henry Thompson signed the temporary settlement in the divorce case on Jan. 30, canceling a hearing that was supposed to take place on Jan. 31 in which Mr. Wade was expected to testify about his relationship with Ms. Willis.

Ms. Willis has been accused of being in an “improper” relationship with Mr. Wade, whom she appointed as a special prosecutor in the Fulton County election interference case against the former president and over a dozen co-defendants.

President Trump and Republicans have alleged that Ms. Willis’ case against the former president is a politically-driven prosecution meant to derail his 2024 comeback bid.

(Left) Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis speaks during a news conference at the Fulton County Government building in Atlanta, on Aug. 14, 2023. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images), (Right) Former President Donald Trump leaves at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 12, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Ms. Willis was subpoenaed in Mr. Wade’s divorce case, but she sought to quash the subpoena.

Cobb County Superior Court Judge Henry Thompson refused to quash the subpoena, however, saying he would decide whether Ms. Willis should testify after first hearing testimony from Mr. Wade at a planned Jan. 31 hearing.

The divorce settlement means Mr. Wade avoids having to testify at Wednesday’s hearing.

Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has told Ms. Willis to respond to allegations of being in an “improper” relationship by Friday and a hearing has been set in mid-February.

The Allegations

An attorney representing Michael Roman, one of the co-defendants, filed a motion on Jan. 8 to dismiss the Fulton County election interference case, alleging misconduct on the part of Fulton County prosecutors.

Mr. Roman’s attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, alleged in the 100-plus page filing that Ms. Willis was engaged in an “improper, clandestine personal relationship” with Mr. Wade and of “profiting significantly” from the relationship at the expense of taxpayers.

Court documents show that Mr. Wade paid for Ms. Willis to fly with him to two different cities.

Ms. Merchant also accused Ms. Willis of using funds meant for clearing a pandemic-era backlog of cases in Fulton County to pay Mr. Wade a large sum of money.

Documents show Mr. Wade has been paid at a rate of $250 per hour for his involvement in the case, or around $650,000 in total.

Mr. Roman is seeking to disqualify Ms. Willis and her office from the election interference case, per his attorney’s Jan. 8 filing.

Fulton County special prosecutor Nathan Wade (L) and executive district attorney Daysha Young confer during a hearing in the election interference case against President Trump, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Ga., on Dec. 1, 2023. John David Mercer-Pool/Getty Images

President Trump has also made similar demands, saying that both Ms. Willis and the case have been “totally compromised” and the case against him should be dismissed.

Prosecutors have not yet filed a response to Ms. Merchant’s motion, although they have said they intend to.

The Fulton County Audit Committee has also asked Ms. Willis to address the “improper” relationship allegations.

Bob Ellis, the Fulton County Commissioner, called on Ms. Willis in a Jan. 21 letter to provide explanations, including regarding payments to Mr. Wade, by Feb. 2.

Investigation and Articles of Impeachment

Ms. Willis faces an investigation in the Georgia Legislature over alleged misconduct, while a Georgia lawmaker recently filed a resolution to impeach Ms. Willis, alleging various acts of “malfeasance, tyrannical partiality, and oppression.”

Accusing Ms. Willis of suffering from “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” State Rep. Charlice Byrd, a Republican, alleged that Ms. Willis used her office not to pursue justice but for political gain.

Ms. Byrd said in a Jan. 26 statement that she has introduced H.R. 872, a resolution to vote on impeachment charges against Ms. Willis.

The resolution calls Ms. Willis’ indictment “the severest case of gross abuse of discretion” while alleging that the Fulton County DA “grossly violated” her oath of office, in which she swore to be impartial.

Ms. Byrd’s impeachment resolution also accuses Ms. Willis of engaging in an “inappropriate” and “unethical” relationship with Mr. Wade while alleging that she profited from the relationship.

There are a total of 22 articles of impeachment in the resolution, each an alleged violation of Georgia Code 16-10-1.

While the resolution doesn’t go into detail about the allegedly political nature of the prosecution, similar claims have been made by House investigators.

The Georgia Senate adopted a resolution in a Jan. 26 floor vote that establishes a committee to investigate the various misconduct allegations against Ms. Willis.

The alleged misconduct includes ongoing expenditure of “significant public funds for the purpose of hiring a special assistant district attorney with whom District Attorney Willis had, and may yet have an ongoing romantic relationship,” the Senate resolution reads.

If such a relationship were proven to exist, it would amount to a “clear conflict of interest and a fraud upon the taxpayers of Fulton County and the State of Georgia,” potentially leading to Ms. Willis’ recusal, delays in the trial against President Trump, the appointment of a special prosecutor, and disciplinary actions, per the resolution.

Ms. Willis’ office did not respond to a request for comment.

In prior remarks regarding the scandal, however, she suggested racism was the motivation behind the scrutiny.