Judge rules Fani Willis cannot intervene in nearly $17M compensation for Trump prosecution case

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that District Attorney Fani Willis cannot intervene in a fight for nearly $17 million in compensation for legal fees over the racketeering case against President Trump and 2020 election supporters.

Trump and 13 others were indicted in August 2023 over alleged interference in the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, but the case was dropped after Willis was disqualified for a conflict of interest stemming from a romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, and special prosecutor Peter Skandalakis decided against prosecution after Trump started his second term.

The president and his former co-defendants are now seeking nearly $16.8 million in legal fees from Fulton County under a newly enacted state law that allows former defendants to seek legal costs after a prosecutor is disqualified, FOX 5 Atlanta reported.

McAfee on Monday denied the Fulton County District Attorney's Office the ability to fight the lawsuit, ruling that because the office was "wholly disqualified" due to a conflict of interest, it cannot now return to defend its past charging decisions.

The judge ruled that the DA's interests are already "adequately represented" by the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council, which took over the case after Willis’s removal.

McAfee allowed Fulton County as a corporate entity to participate in the case because it provides the "overwhelming source of funding" for the DA's office, meaning that the "financial buck" for the $16.8 million would likely stop at the county’s desk.

"Novelty abounds," McAfee wrote, noting that the court must navigate new procedural waters to determine if the $16.8 million in requested fees, spanning 14 different defendants, is reasonable.

The DA's office submitted a motion for a "certificate of immediate review" just hours after the order was filed, signaling an intent to appeal the decision to a higher court.

Willis's office argued that barring them from the litigation violates "fundamental notions of due process." Andrea Alabi, Willis's lawyer, wrote that the proceedings seek to take money directly from the DA's budget "without her participation."

The office also requested a stay of all case proceedings until an appellate court could rule.