The Georgia State Senate has approved legislation that paves the way for an investigation into Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who faces misconduct allegations related to an election interference case she brought against former President Donald Trump.
President Trump has alleged that Ms. Willis’ case—brought under Georgia laws to fight organized crime—is a politically-driven prosecution meant to thwart his 2024 presidential comeback bid.
Ms. Willis has been accused of having an “improper” romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade and of benefiting from it financially.
The new Georgia Senate committee will be tasked with carrying out legislative investigations, possessing authority such as administering oaths and summoning individuals to testify under oath.
Despite having wide-ranging powers to carry out the investigation, the panel will not have the ability to impose sanctions on Ms. Willis.
Ms. Willis’ office did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
The Investigation
The legislation was introduced on Jan. 22 by Sen. Greg Dolezal, a Republican who serves as chairman of Georgia’s Senate Committee on Transportation and Chief Deputy Whip.“The multitude of accusations surrounding Ms. Willis, spanning from allegations of prosecutorial misconduct to questions about the use of public funds and accusations of an unprofessional relationship, underscores the urgency for a thorough and impartial examination,” he said in a statement.
“We owe it to the public to ensure transparency, accountability and the preservation of the integrity of our justice system,” he added.
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.
If the allegations against Ms. Willis were proven true, it could tarnish her reputation and that of her office and erode public trust in fair justice administration, according to the resolution. It could also raise doubts about the validity of charges against President Trump and over a dozen co-defendants.
The Allegations
An attorney representing Michael Roman, one of the co-defendants in the case, filed a motion on Jan. 8 to dismiss the case based on alleged misconduct on the part of Fulton County prosecutors.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.
Prosecutors have not yet filed a response to Ms. Merchant’s motion, although they said they would.
Ms. Merchant’s filing argued that Ms. Willis’s’ alleged misconduct was grounds for the dismissal of charges against Mr. Roman and the dismissal of Ms. Willis and her team.