On Thursday, a Georgia appeals court ruled that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is disqualified from overseeing the prosecution of President-elect Donald Trump and other defendants in the Georgia 2020 election case.
Despite her removal, the indictment against Trump and the other defendants will remain in place, according to a report by CNBC.
The decision now shifts the responsibility to the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, which must appoint another prosecutor to take over the high-profile case.
The newly assigned prosecutor will decide whether to move forward with the charges. However, the timeline for the case could face further delays if Willis appeals the ruling to the Georgia Supreme Court, the Associated Press reported.
The case has been largely stalled in recent months as the Georgia Court of Appeals deliberated on whether Willis should be disqualified.
The court’s decision followed the cancellation of a scheduled hearing in early December, with judges stating that the arguments were “hereby canceled until further order of this Court.”
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee had previously ruled in March that there was a “significant appearance of impropriety” involving Willis and the case.
McAfee ordered that either Willis or special prosecutor Nathan Wade step down. At the time, Wade resigned from the case, but McAfee determined that Trump and other defendants had not met the burden of proving Willis’ romantic involvement with Wade, which would have created a direct conflict of interest.
Trump and eight co-defendants have consistently argued that removing only Wade was insufficient to resolve the broader “appearance of impropriety” associated with Willis’ involvement.
In their appellate filings, the defendants stated that McAfee’s initial ruling fell short and represented a “structural error” that jeopardized the fairness of the proceedings.
The filings further asserted that this error could not only cause substantial issues at trial but also potentially lead to an overturned verdict if the case proceeded with Willis at the helm.
The removal of Willis represents a significant shakeup in a case that has garnered national attention. With the appointment of a new prosecutor still pending, the prosecution’s strategy and priorities could shift. Legal experts suggest that such changes may influence the timeline and outcome of the case.
While the indictment against Trump and his co-defendants remains intact, the delays stemming from the court’s decision and potential appeals could push the trial further into the future.
The Georgia Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council must now identify a replacement to oversee the case, a process that could take weeks. Meanwhile, any appeal filed by Willis would prolong the uncertainty surrounding the case.
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