UPDATE: President-elect Donald Trump responded to the news of the Georgia Court of Appeals' decision in an interview with Fox News:
In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Trump said the "whole case has been a disgrace to justice."
"It was started by the Biden DOJ as an attack on his political opponent, Donald Trump," he said, "They used anyone and anybody, and she has been disqualified, and her boyfriend has been disqualified, and they stole funds and went on trips."
Trump said the case "should not be allowed to go any further."
WSB Radio reports that Willis is planning to appeal the decision to the Georgia Supreme Court.
Original article:
In a massive victory for President-elect Donald Trump and lovers of freedom everywhere, a Georgia Appeals Court has removed Fani Willis from her prosecution (and persecution) of the once and future president.
BREAKING NEWS 🚨🚨
— Phil Holloway ✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) December 19, 2024
The Georgia Court of Appeals has disqualified Fulton DA #FaniWillis from the RICO case against @realDonaldTrump
🚨🚨
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:
The Georgia Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her office should be removed from the 2020 election interference case, a bombshell decision that will upend the last remaining criminal case against incoming President Donald Trump.
In a 2-1 decision, a panel of judges, all GOP appointees, concluded that Willis’ onetime romantic relationship with former special prosecutor Nathan Wade constituted a conflict of interest that merited her dismissal from the case.
“After carefully considering the trial court’s findings in its order, we conclude that it erred by failing to disqualify DA Willis and her office,” wrote Judges Todd Markle and Trenton Brown in their ruling. The judges also wrote, "we reverse the trial court’s denial of the appellants’ motion to disqualify DA Willis and her office. As we conclude that the elected district attorney is wholly disqualified from this case the assistant district attorneys — whose only power to prosecute a case is derived from the constitutional authority of the district attorney who appointed them — have no authority to proceed." Judge Benjamin Land dissented.
Phil Holloway, an Atlanta attorney who also writes for our sister site Townhall and is a legal expert for Atlanta news media, wrote on X that the case is now "an 'orphan' — an indictment without a prosecutor." He also posted that Willis' famous speech at a church in Atlanta factored into the ruling.
Related: Whatchu Talkin’ ‘Bout, Willis? Fani Goes to Church to Grandstand.
"Forensic misconduct involves extrajudicial statements by prosecutors against defendants," Holloway pointed out.
"After DA Willis spoke publicly in a church service on Sunday, January 14, 2024, the other appellants also filed motions seeking dismissal and disqualification on the same grounds, as well as the additional ground of forensic misconduct in connection with the church speech and various other extrajudicial statements," Markle and Brown wrote.
Willis will most likely appeal the ruling to the Georgia Supreme Court, but this likely kills the Fulton County indictment against Trump.
"The decision is a massive blow to Willis, one of the most recognizable prosecutors in the country who cruised to a second term earlier this month against a relatively inexperienced Republican opponent," the AJC reported. "It also could be the death knell for the fourth and final case that resulted in criminal charges against Trump after he left office in January 2021."
This is a developing story, and we'll have more details as they become available. We're particularly awaiting a statement from the Trump team.
Read the full filing here:
Appeals Court Ruling Against Fani Willis by PJ Media on Scribd
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