Tag: Fulton County

Fani Willis’ Alleged Failure to File Timely Paperwork Prompts Judge to Threaten Court on Weekends in Young Thug Trial

Tom Pappert
Ural Glanville

The office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is once again under fire from a judge as prosecutors face the possibility of court on the weekend due to an alleged failure to make timely court filings in the Young Slime Life trial.

Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville raised his voice at a member of Willis’ office during court on Wednesday, with the judge threatening defense attorney Max Shardt and Fulton County Assistant District Attorney Adriane Love with court on the weekends over the case’s slow progress.

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Judge Scott McAfee Under ‘Tremendous Amount of Pressure’ in Georgia Trump Case, Argues Democrat Seeking His Judgeship

Tom Pappert
Scott McAfee

The Democrat challenging Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee claimed the incumbent is under “tremendous” pressure due to the Georgia case against former President Donald Trump brought by District Attorney Fani Willis.

Robert Patillo, the former executive director of the Rainbow PUSH social justice group started by Reverend Jessee Jackson who is now challenging McAfee, made the remarks in a Wednesday interview with WSB-TV.

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D.C. Bar Disciplinary Panel Makes Nonbinding Preliminary Determination of Culpability for a ‘Thought Crime’ in Disbarment Trial of Trump’s Former DOJ Official Jeffrey Clark

Rachel Alexander
Jeffrey Clark

The disciplinary trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark wrapped up on Thursday with the D.C. Bar’s disciplinary panel making a nonbinding preliminary determination that Clark was culpable on at least one of the two counts against him.

For drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials advising them of their options in dealing with the 2020 election illegalities, he was charged with engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation, and engaging in conduct that seriously interferes with the administration of justice, Rules 8.4(c) and (d) of the Rules of Professional Conduct.

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During Jeffrey Clark’s Disbarment Trial, Cyber Security Expert Says Georgia’s 2020 Election Was Not ‘Conducted According to the Law’

Rachel Alexander
Harry Haury

The second and final week of the disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official began to wind down on Wednesday with more testimony from operations security expert Harry Haury. Clark, who is also a defendant in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution, is being disciplined for drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials after the 2020 election advising them of their options for dealing with the election illegalities.

The trial is expected to wrap up on Thursday with closing statements.

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Georgia Election Integrity Expert Lists Significant Fraud in State’s 2020 Election at Jeffrey Clark’s Disbarment Trial

Rachel Alexander
Garland Favorito

The disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official, Jeffrey Clark, continued into its second and final week on Tuesday, featuring testimony from three witnesses for him.

Clark, a defendant in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution, is being disciplined for drafting a letter never sent to Georgia officials after the 2020 election advising them of their options for dealing with the election illegalities.

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Former Fulton County Elections Official Explains Why He Voted Against Certification Twice During Jeffrey Clark’s Disbarment Trial

Rachel Alexander

The second week of the disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former DOJ official, Jeffrey Clark, resumed its second week on Monday. Clark, who is also a defendant in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ RICO prosecution, is being disciplined for drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials after the 2020 election advising them of their options for dealing with the election illegalities.

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Fani Willis Invokes ‘Race’ in First Speech Since Being Chastised by Judge over Race-Based Church Speech

Tom Pappert
Fani Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis invoked race in her first public speech since Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee cautioned her about invoking race during a previous speech delivered from the pulpit of an Atlanta church.

The district attorney made the remarks about race at the South Fulton Women of the Shield Awards on Friday, stating, “It’s hard out here always having to prove yourself two and three times.”

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Fani Willis Reportedly Wants Trump Trial to Begin Before Election

Tom Pappert
Fani Willis Donald Trump

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is reportedly seeking to begin the Georgia trial of former President Donald Trump before voters head to the polls in November.

After Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee determined that Willis could stay on the Trump case so long as she parted ways with her former lover and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, CNN reported that multiple sources close to the district attorney claim she intends to take the former president’s case to trial soon as possible.

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Alan Dershowitz Commentary: Fani Willis Must Still Be Disqualified

Admin
Fani Willis

Just as predicted, Judge Scott McAfee tried to cut the baby in half, but the baby died, because his split-the-difference opinion makes absolutely no sense legally or factually.

It is obvious that Judge McAfee started his decision-making process by deciding the result he wanted: disqualifying special prosecutor Nathan Wade, but retaining Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her entire office. In order to reach that bizarre result, he had to rely on the testimony of Willis, which he knew was totally untruthful.

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Records Showing Nathan Wade Paid with Fulton County Confiscated Property Fund Are ‘Data Entry Error,’ Officials Claim

Tom Pappert
Nathan Wade Money

Fulton County officials on Monday claimed records that reportedly show special prosecutor Nathan Wade was paid using funds from confiscated property are a “clerical error” on behalf of the county government.

Multiple Fulton County spokesmen, including a member of Willis’ office, offered explanations to Newsweek when the publication asked about records it obtained that showed Wade was paid using the county’s confiscated property funds.

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Tom Pappert: ‘Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’ Must Have Played a Role in Fani Willis, Nathan Wade, and Terrance Bradley’s Careers

Kaitlin Housler
Fani Willis

Tom Pappert, reporter for The Georgia Star News and lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, said he believes diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies were part of the explanation as to how Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, special prosecutor Nathan Wade, and attorney Terrance Bradley were hired into positions of influence.

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LockBit Hackers Who Attacked Fulton County Resurface After FBI Action, Claim to Hold Data from Georgia Trump Trial

Tom Pappert
LockBit Hackers

The LockBit hacker group that seized control and temporarily stopped many Fulton County government services resurfaced just four days after an international intelligence operation seized many of the group’s servers in a bid to disrupt its activities.

A rambling message by the group’s pseudonymous leader upon the launch of LockBit’s new website claims that Operation Cronos, the international police action against the hackers, was launched due to documents the organized crime outfit obtained about the Fulton County trial of former President Donald Trump.

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DOJ Announces ‘Disruption’ of Hacking Group That Targeted Fulton County, Georgia

Tom Pappert
Merrick Garland

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Tuesday announced the “disruption” of a Russia-based hacking and ransomware group that targeted Fulton County last month as the result of a joint operation that involved both the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and “international law enforcement partners in London” to seize the group’s infrastructure.

In its press release, the DOJ announced “the disruption of the LockBit ransomware group, one of the most active ransomware groups in the world,” which came as the result of “seizing numerous public-facing websites used by LockBit to connect to the organization’s infrastructure and seizing control of servers used by LockBit administrators.”

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Fulton County Policy Suggests Both DA Willis, Wade Were Required to Disclose Relationship

Just the News
Fani Willis Nathan Wade

A Fulton County policy regarding the disclosure of a romantic relationship with an employee may have applied to both District Attorney Fani Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, yet they testified that they did not inform any county employees of their relationship, according to lawyers observing the case. 

A hearing was held on Thursday and Friday regarding Willis’ relationship with Wade and the resulting potential conflicts of interest regarding the case against former President Donald Trump. Willis last year indicted Trump and 18 co-defendants over his efforts to challenge the 2020 election results in Georgia. She had hired Wade as a special prosecutor to pursue the case.  

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Fani Willis Still Hasn’t Responded to Commissioner’s Request for Information Relating to Alleged Misuse of Funds

Admin
Bob Ellis Fani Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis did not respond to a request for information from a Fulton County commissioner relating to allegations she misused county funds as of late Friday night.

Fulton County Commissioner Bob Ellis said Willis had not responded to his Jan. 19 request for information about whether or not county funds were “misused” by Willis. Ellis set a Friday deadline for Willis to respond, according to a letter provided to the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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Trump Co-Defendant Pokes Holes in Fani Willis’ Defense to Corruption Allegations

Admin
Fulton County D.D. Fani Willis

Trump co-defendant Michael Roman’s attorney poked holes Friday in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ defense to corruption allegations leveled against her.

Willis admitted Friday that she was involved in a relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, who she appointed to work on the case against former President Donald Trump, though she denied she benefited financially and suggested the judge reject Roman’s motion to disqualify her without a hearing. Co-defendant Michael Roman responded by posing various questions that will be raised during cross examination, suggesting witness’ testimony would contradict Willis’ assertions during a hearing.

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Fani Willis Allegedly ‘Stonewalling’ Defense Team, Refused Open Records Requests for Invoices, Contracts, Account of Vacation Time

Tom Pappert
Fani Willis

The Merchant Law Firm, which represents defendant Michael Roman, launched a lawsuit on Monday claiming Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, through her office, is “stonewalling” their defense team by refusing to comply with public records requests for invoices from special prosecutor Nathan Wade, contracts for other contracted prosecutors in her office, and an account of her vacation time.

Roman is a defendant in Willis’ case against former President Donald Trump, and the law firm behind the lawsuit claims Willis’ office continues to slow-walk the release of information that was originally requested by his attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, on September 1.

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Commissioner Who Wants to Bump Fani Willis’ Budget Recently Lost Thousands of Taxpayer Dollars in Court

Admin
Natalie Hall

The Fulton County commissioner who wants to increase District Attorney Fani Willis’ budget by over $9 million recently cost taxpayers thousands by losing a sexual discrimination lawsuit brought by her former chief of staff.

A judge ruled earlier this month that Commissioner Natalie Hall sexually discriminated against her former chief of staff Calvin Brock, ordering the county to provide Brock backpay from September 2020 with interest, along with attorneys fees and $65,00 in damages, Fox 5 Atlanta reported on Jan. 12. Hall is proposing adding $9.7 million to the District Attorney’s budget, the Daily Caller News Foundation reported Monday.

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D.C. Bar Disciplinary Panel Holds Contentious Pretrial Hearing Before Disbarment Trial of Trump’s Former DOJ Attorney Jeff Clark

Admin

A District of Columbia Bar disciplinary panel held a pretrial hearing last month to prepare for the upcoming disbarment trial against President Donald Trump’s former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark. Clark (pictured above) is also being prosecuted in Georgia and is an unindicted co-conspirator in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s federal prosecution, due to a letter Clark drafted to Georgia election officials after the 2020 election advising them of options the Georgia Legislature could take to address the concerns about election illegalities. The letter was never sent nor circulated.

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Trump Expands Lead in Georgia as Poll Shows Biden Struggles with Young People

Tom Pappert

Former President Donald Trump has expanded his lead over President Joe Biden in Georgia, according to a new CNN-SRSS poll, which suggests the current president is struggling with voters in key demographics.

The poll showed Trump winning with 49 percent of the vote, while just 44 percent of voters said they would vote for Biden. The polling was conducted between November 30 and December 7, and pollsters reported a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percent.

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Democratic Georgia State Senator Calls for Fulton County Sheriff to Resign for Jail ‘Crisis’

Tom Pappert

Georgia State Senator Joshua McLaurin (D-Sandy Springs) called for embattled Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat (D) to resign on Monday in response to the “crisis” at the Fulton County Jail.

McLaurin cited Labat’s recent controversies, which include allegations he used the jail’s Inmate Welfare Fund as a “slush fund” and questions about why medical bracelets purchased from a company tied to Georgia legislators were not being used at the facility, before calling for his resignation.

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Judge Signs Protective Order Written by Defense, Not DA Fani Willis, After Video Leaks in Georgia Trump Trial

Tom Pappert

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee signed a protective order on Thursday to seal sensitive evidence in District Attorney Fani Willis’ racketeering case against former President Donald Trump following the leak of proffer videos earlier this week. However, McAfee adopted the protective order submitted by former Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer, one of the co-defendants in the case, instead of the more restrictive order submitted by Willis on Tuesday.

He explained that Willis first requested a protective order on September 27, but Shafer and nine other defendants informed the court they were negotiating the details of a joint protective order with prosecutors. The negotiations apparently reached an impasse by October 5, but remained ongoing as of October 16, according to McAfee’s order. 

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Fulton County Election Issues: Ballot Counting, Voter Rolls, Challenges, Board Seats, Lawsuits

Just the News

While Fulton County, Ga., initially missed a box of early voting ballots during tabulation of last Tuesday’s election results, the county has a history of election issues since at least 2020. Fulton County, which includes Atlanta and is the most populous Georgia county, has experienced issues with ballot counting, voter rolls, and lawsuits over elections.

On Tuesday, the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections (BRE) has acknowledged “some batches” of absentee in-person ballots were missed from the Nov. 7 elections, but later found during the recount.

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Trump Co-Defendant Claims He Can Prove 2020 Election Fraud in Georgia at Trial Using Secretary of State Data

Tom Pappert

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled Friday the Georgia Secretary of State’s office must submit a new motion to quash a request from Harrison Floyd, who subpoenaed the government agency for information related to the 2020 election. Floyd’s attorney claims Georgia’s state agencies have information that will prove the 2020 elections in Fulton County and Georgia were fraudulent, which in turn will confirm his client’s innocence at trial.

Floyd is the former director of Black Voices for Trump, and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis included him in her racketeering case against former President Donald Trump. She claims he tried to coerce a false confession from a Georgia election worker who former Trump campaign lawyer Rudy Giuliani accused of counting fraudulent ballots.

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In Disbarment Trial of Trump’s Former Attorney John Eastman, He Reveals How He Believes Votes Were Switched in Georgia’s 2020 Election

Rachel Alexander

The disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s former attorney and constitutional legal scholar, John Eastman, finished a partial ninth week on Tuesday, as the renowned former law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas explained how he thought fraud occurred in the 2020 election. The State Bar of California is attempting to disbar him over advice he gave Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence regarding accepting electoral slates from states suspected of election fraud.

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In His Disbarment Trial, Trump’s Attorney John Eastman Discusses Alarming Findings of Wrongdoing from Official Reports About the 2020 Election

Rachel Alexander

The eighth week of the disbarment trial of Donald Trump’s attorney and constitutional legal scholar John Eastman wrapped up on Friday, featuring more testimony by Eastman as well as three of his character witnesses. Eastman discussed the evidence he relied upon when he gave Trump advice regarding what to do about the possibility there was cheating in the 2020 election, including official reports from the Georgia General Assembly, the Georgia State Election Board, and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp’s office. 

Eastman’s attorney Randy Miller asked him about a Nov. 13, 2020 report that the Georgia State Election Board had Seven Hills Strategies prepare about problems in the 2020 election, which Eastman said he’d relied on. It discussed chain of custody issues surrounding ballots and the integrity of their transportation, lack of transparency, lack of access for Republican Party monitors, and incompetency by election officials. California Disciplinary Judge Yvette Roland, who contributed to Democrats while serving on the bench, refused to let him discuss it.

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Fani Willis Rebukes Congressional Oversight for Trump Case, Claims Jim Jordan’s Effort ‘Offensive to the Rule of Law’

Tom Pappert

Another letter sent by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) to U.S. Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH-04) was obtained by the media on Thursday. In the letter, Willis again rebuked Jordan’s requests for information about her case against former President Donald Trump, and denied the U.S. Constitution gives Congress oversight of her work.

In her letter, which is dated October 11, Willis accused Jordan of either being “ignorant of the United States and Georgia Constitutions and codes” or using his “authority as Chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary to attempt to obstruct and interfere” with her case against Trump.

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Fani Willis’ Office Failed to Meet Deadlines, Allowing Potentially Dangerous Defendants to Post Bail

Tom Pappert

A new report published Tuesday reveals Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ office has repeatedly failed to charge alleged criminals within a 90-day window from their arrest, forcing judges who previously denied them bail to renege and grant it, with at least 20 separate instances identified by 11 Alive.

Georgia law requires those who are arrested and refused bail to be formally indicted within 90 days, or else given bail, and 11 Alive claims court documents prove the county has failed to do this nearly two dozen times.

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Georgia Republican Senators to Probe Fulton County Jail as Sheriff Moves Inmates to Mississippi

Tom Pappert

The Georgia Senate announced a new subcommittee to probe severe overcrowding and dangerous conditions at the Fulton County Jail on Thursday, with news breaking on Wednesday that State Senators John Albers (R-Alpharetta) and Randy Robertson (R-Cataula) will lead the probe.

The probe was revealed as activists gathered to protest Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat’s plan to relocate inmates to other facilities, including ones in South Georgia and Mississippi.

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Judge Cautions Fulton County Prosecutors over Witness Requirements, Expects Trial May Take Five Months

Tom Pappert

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee cautioned prosecutors working for District Attorney Fani Willis against calling witnesses not specifically outlined in their witness list. McAfee made his warning during a procedural hearing on Friday for the trial of attorneys Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell, who face charges for their alleged part in what Willis claims was a racketeering scheme meant to illegally influence the 2020 election in Georgia.

Responding to a discovery notice filed by prosecutors, which sought to notify the court of their intention to call additional witnesses who provided testimony to the special grand jury but are not identified as witnesses, McAfee told special prosecutor Nathan Wade he expects “the state to be adhering to witness list rules, and if there are witnesses that are buried in discovery somewhere that don’t make it on that list, we’re going to have an issue and we’re going to have to talk through it.”

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Fulton County Sheriff’s Office Confirms Ex-Guard Accused of Strangling Detainee Is ‘Biologically a Female,’ Mug Shot Shows Person with Beard and Receding Hairline

Tom Pappert

A former guard at the Fulton County Jail, who was charged on Thursday after allegedly strangling a detainee to the point of losing consciousness, appears to be a biologically female person who identifies as a transgender male.

An indictment was returned by a federal grand jury on Thursday, charging former Fulton County Jail detention officer Monique Clark with using excessive force when allegedly strangling a female detainee until she fell unconscious and was injured. Conflicting reporting about Clark’s gender appears to indicate Clark was born biologically female, but now identifies as male.

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Georgia Prosecutors Claim Mark Meadows Was ‘Meddling’ in ‘Matters of State Authority’ After 2020 Election

Tom Pappert

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) accused former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows of abusing his federal position to interfere with Georgia’s 2020 elections, according to a filing her office submitted to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday.

Meadows has repeatedly sought to have his case removed from Fulton County to a federal court. That attempt was stymied by a federal judge, but an expedited appeal was granted to the 11th Circuit. Meadows’ lawyers submitted their filing last week, arguing that Willis was committing unforced constitutional “errors” in her “unnecessary” effort to prevent his case’s removal.

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Investigator at Fani Willis’s Office Accidentally Shot Herself in Fulton County Courthouse

Tom Pappert

An investigator working for the Fulton County District Attorney’s office shot herself on Friday while at the Fulton County Courthouse. The investigator, who works in the office of District Attorney Fani Willis, was not critically injured in the accidental discharge.

News first broke on Friday morning that a shooting incident occurred at the Fulton County Courthouse, with the sheriff’s office reporting there was “no active threat” at the time. Within an hour, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office confirmed “an accidental discharge” by an “investigator who wounded herself” but was not critically injured.

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Lawyer Indicted in Georgia Trump Case Warns Fani Willis Violated Attorney-Client Privilege, Wants Evidence Stricken

Tom Pappert

Attorney Kenneth Chesebro argued that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis may have violated his privileged communications with clients during her blanket search of his email account, according to legal filing made by his lawyers on Thursday.

Chesebro, who is among those indicted by Willis in her racketeering case against former President Donald Trump and those who helped him contest the 2020 election, alleged that Willis and her office violated Georgia law when it gained blanket access to Chesebro’s email account in July, according to his lawyers’ filing. Chesebro is asking Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to suppress any evidence gathered from those emails.

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Georgia Secretary of State Raffensperger Among Witnesses Fani Willis Plans to Call in Trump Trial

Tom Pappert

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis revealed about a dozen witnesses she plans to call in her racketeering case against former President Donald Trump in a legal filing on Wednesday. Willis named the witnesses to illustrate potential conflicts of interests for defense attorneys.

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R), and his wife Patricia, will both be called as witnesses by the prosecution, according to Willis’s filing.

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Family Announces Lawsuit Against Fulton County Jail After Inmate Stabbed to Death

Tom Pappert

The family of a deceased Fulton County Jail detainee who was stabbed to death announced its intention to sue the jail on Wednesday but will first offer the facility a 30-day window to “address the situation appropriately” before the lawsuit is filed. During a Thursday press conference, the family’s lawyers provided details surrounding the stabbing death.

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Mark Meadows Argues Fani Willis ‘Committed Errors’ in ‘Unnecessary’ Effort to Keep Case in Fulton County

Tom Pappert

Mark Meadows, the former White House Chief of Staff for the Trump administration, argued in a Monday legal filing that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis “committed errors” that raise “serious constitutional concerns” in her “unnecessarily complicated” attempts to prevent his case from being removed to a federal court.

Meadows has repeatedly asserted the case brought against him by Fulton County should be tried in a federal court, citing his position as a government employee who answered directly to former President Donald Trump when his alleged offenses were committed. U.S. District Court Judge Steve Jones denied various attempts from Meadows to remove the case, but late last week the 11th Circuit announced it would hear his appeal and grant it expedited status.

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Majority of Georgia Voters Say Trump Prosecution Unfair, Support Special Session to Reign in Fulton County

Tom Pappert

A majority of Georgia voters now believe the Fulton County criminal case against former President Donald Trump and those who helped him contest the 2020 election is “unfair,” according to new polling by Rasmussen Reports. Georgia voters also support a special session in the Georgia Legislature to defund or impeach Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

The majority of Georgia voters believe Trump is being unfairly prosecuted, with 56 percent of respondents to Rasmussen agreeing, including 39 percent who said it was “very likely.” This is compared with just 37 percent of voters who said it was unlikely Trump was being unfairly prosecuted.

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Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis Announces $2.5 Million Federal Grant to Examine Backlog of 4,300 Rape Kits

Tom Pappert

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) has received a $2.5 million federal grant for her office to examine a backlog of more than 4,000 rape kits, with some dating back to the 1980s, she revealed in a press conference this week.

Willis announced the $2.5 million grant in a press conference on Thursday, when she said the funding will support testing for the rape kits of “4,342 victims” who “had the very worst day of their life” but “didn’t get justice” from Fulton County.

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40,000 Fulton County Criminal Cases ‘Frozen’ Because Fani Willis ‘Blindly’ Pursuing Trump, Says Former Sen. Kelly Loeffler

Tom Pappert

During an appearance on “The John Fredericks Show” on Thursday, former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler said the criminal justice system of Fulton County is “frozen,” with the county jail overcrowded and 40,000 criminal cases in the backlog, because District Attorney Fani Willis is “blindly” pursuing her cases against former President Donald Trump and those who helped him contest the 2020 election.

Loeffler told host John Fredericks, the publisher of The Georgia Star News, that Willis’s actions suggest “a two tiered system of justice” and said the Georgia Legislature should encourage the Prosecuting Attorneys Qualifications Commission (PAQC) to fully investigate Willis, including how she is spending taxpayer money.

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Georgia Trump Case Severed from Powell, Chesebro in First Major Blow to Fani Willis

Tom Pappert

The criminal case in Fulton County, Georgia against lawyers Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell was severed from the greater indictment against former President Donald Trump and the other 17 defendants on Thursday morning, representing the first major blow to District Attorney Fani Willis (D).

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee received arguments from Willis and the defendants on Wednesday, and on Thursday morning ultimately determined it was “a procedural and logistical inevitability” to sever the cases. McAfee also wrote that “[a]dditional divisions of these 17 defendants may well be required” as the trial proceeds.

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One Trial with 19 Defendants Only ‘Feasible’ Option to Prosecute Georgia Trump Case, Fani Willis Claims

Tom Pappert

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis claimed the only “feasible” way to prosecute former President Donald Trump and 18 other defendants is in one, unified case on Wednesday. Willis said separating the cases, as multiple defendants have requested, would “create an enormous strain” for Fulton County.

Willis, in a legal filing submitted with colleagues F. McDonald Wakeford and Alex Bernick, argued to preserve the case against Trump and the other defendants who helped him contest the 2020 election. The filing was submitted to Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Wednesday.

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Fulton County Special Prosecutor’s Law Firm Earns Nearly $550,000 in Trump Case, so Far

Tom Pappert

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has spent nearly $550,000 bankrolling defense lawyer Nathan Wade as special prosecutor in her case against former President Donald Trump and 18 of his current or former associates who helped him contest the 2020 election in Georgia.

Records made available by the Fulton County government reveals that the Law Offices of Nathan J. Wade earned $303,226.51 in 2022, and thus far in 2023 has earned an additional $245,750. Similarly, his legal partner Christopher Campbell has received $116,670 from Fulton County between 2021 and 2023, while former colleague Terrence Bradley was paid $74,480 by Fulton County in 2021 and 2022.

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Trump Pleads Not Guilty in Georgia Election Case After Waiving Arraignment

Just the News

Former President Donald Trump on Thursday pleaded not guilty to 13 felony charges related to his alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia, and he waived his right to appear in court in Fulton County next week.

Trump was scheduled to be arraigned in Georgia on Sept. 6 alongside 18 co-defendants on charges under the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO, as well as charges of making false statements and soliciting a public official to violate their oath of office, among other things.

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Post Debate, Georgia Arrest and Mugshot, Trump Continues to Dominate GOP Race

M.D. Kittle

So much for indictments, mug shots, and the first GOP presidential primary debate. Teflon Donald Trump remains the clear favorite among Republican voters, according to a new Economist/YouGov poll.

The online survey of 1,500 adults, most of them registered voters, provides an interesting snapshot on just how important last week’s debate was — or wasn’t — and how unpopular some of the GOP presidential candidates are.

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