Donald Trump and his co-defendants in the Fulton County racketeering case are demanding that Judge Scott McAfee reconsider his decision that District Attorney Fani Willis can remain on the case.
McAfee ruled last week that, lead prosecutor Nathan Wade is removed from the case, Willis could remain. He had been considerign an ethics complaint from the defendants concerning a romantic relationship between the two.
"The March 15 Order is of exceptionally great importance to this case, substantially impacting Defendants' rights to due process. Additionally, given the lack of guidance from the appellate courts on key issues, and the fact that any errors in the March 15 Order could be structural errors that would necessitate retrial(s), the grant of certificate of immediate review is both prudent and warranted," Monday's nine-page filing says.
"Basically, they want permission from Judge McAfee to appeal his ruling on DA Willis' disqualification," explained reporter Tamar Hallerman of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Trump was cited along with co-defendants Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, Robert Cheeley, Michael Roman, David Shafer, Harrison Floyd, and Cathleen Latham in the paperwork.
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Commenting on the matter on social media, former prosecutor Joyce Vance explained, "For there to be an unusual interlocutory appeal — one that occurs before trial — requires approval from Judge McAfee, who has until Monday. If he blesses an appeal, it's still up to the Court of Appeals to decide if it wants to take the case."
"A little tea-leaf reading," she continued, "although it's nothing certain: Judge McAfee dropped a footnote in his opinion dismissing 6 counts in the indictment last week saying he’d permit an appeal. He didn’t do that with the disqualification motion. Make of that what you will."
McAfee's dropped the indictments, saying they were too vague, though several others remain. That decision was separate from the hearing regarding Willis' disqualification.
Critics called the appeal requestanother case of Trump attempting to delay things, while others pointed out that innocent people don't make moves like that.
Trump's lawyers alleged that Willis' relationship with Wade resulted in gifts paid for with his salary from Fulton County. Willis disputed the accusations and told the court she repaid Wade in cash, a story substantiated by her father and a winery server.