Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said Monday she will decline to testify before the Georgia state Senate’s special committee investigating whether she misused taxpayer dollars during of his relationship with former special prosecutor Nathan Wade.
“First of all, I don’t even think they have the power to subpoena me, but they need to learn the law,” Willis said of the investigation carried out by the Republicans during a press conference.
“I will not appear to do anything illegal and I have not broken the law in any way,” the prosecutor continued.
“I’m sorry that people are upset that everyone is treated the same,” she added.
The special investigative committee held its third public hearing last week, which examined the amount of money Willis’ office spent prosecuting the historic racketeering case against former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants and the lack of oversight from other government entities on the matter. prosecutor’s office.
The committee has already issued a subpoena for testimony from co-defendant Michael Roman’s defense attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, who first shed light on allegations of an “inappropriate” and “clandestine” relationship » between Willis and Wade in January.
Republican Sen. Bill Cowsert, chairman of the special committee, said he would force Willis to testify if she did not appear voluntarily.
“I sure hope it doesn’t happen,” Cowsert told FOX 5, threatening to hold Willis in contempt if she ignored a future subpoena.
“If she is subpoenaed by the Committee, she will have to appear, otherwise she will be violating Georgia law,” Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones told the outlet.
“This is what treating everyone equally looks like, even though Prosecutor Willis doesn’t like being held accountable,” he added.
Wade resigned from the Trump case in March after Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee issued an ultimatum, forcing him or Willis to step aside for the case to move forward.
Both Willis and Wade admitted to having a romance, but both insisted under oath that their relationship did not become official until 2022, after already filing charges against the former president and his co-defendants.
Willis’ office reportedly paid Wade $654,000 in 2022 as part of his work on the election interference case.
The findings of the state Senate investigation will inform legislative actions, including possibly enacting laws to ensure more accountability and oversight of the prosecutor’s office, according to the Georgia Senate.
New York Post
