Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis struck a defiant tone in early questioning before a Georgia Senate committee Wednesday at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta.
Willis was contemptuous when questioned by Sen. Greg Dolezal, who was filling in as chair of a committee founded to investigate the DA’s handling of the Donald Trump election interference case.
Willis said she didn’t know how much the case had cost. She criticized what she called a “dumbass question.” And her lawyer, former Gov. Roy Barnes, called the proceeding “a witch hunt.”
Willis blasted Dolezal, R-Cumming, for what she described as second-guessing her decision to hire three independent attorneys to help prosecute the case — including a decision to hire Nathan Wade, a special prosecutor with whom she developed a romantic relationship that ultimately caused the case to unravel.
“The people of Fulton County have selected me to make these choices, and I make them,” Willis told the panel. “And my city and county are safer because I make them.’”
State Sen. Bill Cowsert, R-Athens, chairs the Senate Special Committee on Investigations. Dolezal, the vice chair, said Cowsert was unable to attend after undergoing a medical procedure.
Dolezal kept his cool. But at times Willis seemed to take command of the hearing.
Wednesday’s exchange was the latest dramatic moment in a yearslong saga that has had plenty. After years of investigating Trump’s attempt to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 victory in Georgia, Willis indicted the former president and 18 others in 2023 for their roles in what Willis alleged was a sweeping conspiracy.
She quickly obtained four guilty pleas. But the case hit a snag when defense attorneys accused Willis of having a conflict of interest because of her romantic relationship with special prosecutor Wade.
Those allegations led to a dramatic courtroom confrontation where defense attorneys quizzed Willis about the relationship and she accused them of lying about it.
A Fulton County judge later declined to disqualify Willis, and Wade resigned from the case. But an appeals court overturned that decision, and last September the Georgia Supreme Court upheld that decision. Last month, another prosecutor dismissed the remaining charges.
The hearing is ongoing and is anticipated to stretch late into the afternoon. Stay with AJC.com for updates.
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