May 9, 2024
Appeals Court To Review Ruling Allowing Fani Willis To Remain On Election Interference Case
The review places another delay on a criminal case involving the embattled former president, making it possible that Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, will not have to stand trial until after November’s election.
On May 8, a Georgia appeals court decided to review a ruling from a lower court that would allow Fani Willis, the Fulton County District Attorney, to continue to prosecute former President Donald Trump on charges of election interference. The review places another delay on a criminal case involving the embattled former president, making it possible that Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, will not have to stand trial until after November’s election.
As the Associated Press reported, Trump’s lead attorney in the State of Georgia, Steve Sadow, informed them via email that Trump’s legal team looks forward to presenting their argument that Willis “should be disqualified for her misconduct in this unjustified, unwarranted political persecution.”
Whichever side loses the court battle is expected to appeal the decision, which will further delay the case. Judge Scott McAfee said in his order granting Willis the ability to stay on the case that he wants to continue addressing other pre-trial motions. McAfee wrote, “regardless of whether the petition is granted…and even if any subsequent appeal is expedited by the appellate court.”
The case was already sidelined once, as the relationship between Fani Willis and former Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade was explored in detail, while the more serious charges against Trump and the other defendants were ignored and placed on the back burner. Willis also faces more scrutiny from a GOP-led panel, which she indicated did not have the legal authority to subpoena her. As Fox 5 reported, Willis stated at a news conference, “First of all, I don’t think they even have the authority to subpoena me, but they need to learn the law. I will not appear to anything that is unlawful, and I have not broken the law,” Willis said. “I’ve said it amongst these leaders; I’m sorry folks get pissed off that everybody gets treated equally.”
As CNN reported, the delay in the election interference case is a strong signal that the efforts of the defense team to keep pushing the trial back is working. In that case, no trial date has officially been set, while in the case of Trump’s Florida trial over his alleged mishandling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate, a judge postponed that trial indefinitely.
The Supreme Court, meanwhile, has not issued a ruling regarding whether or not Trump is protected from his actions as president, using the broad claim of presidential immunity. While the justices appear to seem skeptical of that particular claim, no ruling in the case seems imminent. In that case, NBC News noted that a trial before the election is still possible, but it would need to get started quickly to beat that deadline.