Appearances matter when it comes to members of our government, and perhaps even more so when it comes to criminal prosecutors. This is why Fulton County, Georgia, Judge Scott McAfee ruled Friday morning that while there is not an actual conflict of interest preventing District Attorney Fani Willis from pursuing the election interference case against former President Donald Trump, there is the appearance of one. McAfee therefore ordered either Willis or Nathan Wade, her appointed special assistant district attorney and former boyfriend, off the case.
Wade stepped down Friday afternoon.
McAfee’s ruling is a strong rebuke of Willis, of the lack of judgment she exercised in this instance and of her conduct.
McAfee’s ruling is a strong rebuke of Willis, of the lack of judgment she exercised in this instance and of her conduct. And that’s only appropriate. She fell short of acting in a way that acknowledges the enormous responsibility that she has been entrusted with. And McAfee was right to tell her so.
The judge’s ruling follows a claim by defendants (including Trump, Michael Roman, Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows and Jeffrey Clark) that Willis had or has a personal stake in the case against them because she financially benefited from her romantic relationship with Wade, whom she hired. McAfee concluded that the defendants failed to demonstrate an actual conflict of interest. Even so, the rest of his ruling was sharply critical of Willis. He said his ruling against the defendants “is by no means an indication that the Court condones this tremendous lapse in judgment or the unprofessional manner of the District Attorney’s testimony during the evidentiary hearing.”
Prosecutors have a responsibility to the public and are entrusted with significant powers. As McAfee noted, they are not merely advocates for one side of the criminal justice system, but they “must make decisions in the public’s interest.” The judge emphasized that “the prosecutor’s duty to…
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