ATLANTA– A Georgia State Senate Special Committee who had subpoenaed Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis with the intention of questioning her Friday about “alleged misconduct” related to her election case against former President Donald Trump couldn’t do that because she didn’t show up.
The Republican-led committee was formed earlier this year to investigate allegations of “various misconduct” against Willis, an elected Democrat, in connection with her prosecution of Trump and others over their efforts to overturn the former president’s loss in the 2020 election in Georgia. The committee last month sent Willis subpoenas ordering her to appear and produce reams of documents.
Willis is contesting the subpoenas in court, but her appeal has not yet been heard. Her lawyers have argued that the subpoenas are invalid.
In Willis’ absence on Friday, the committee heard from an attorney from the legislative counsel’s office and a former Senate secretary. Both said the committee does have the authority to subpoena witnesses to appear and produce documents.
Committee Chairman Senator Bill Cowsert noted at the beginning of the hearing that Willis was not present. As the hearing drew to a close, he asked the doorman to check the hallway outside the committee room in the State Capitol to make sure she was not waiting there.
“Let us note for the record that Ms. Willis did not appear in accordance with the subpoena and did not produce the requested documents,” Cowsert said, adding that the committee has retained outside legal counsel to assist in enforcing the subpoena.
The committee went into closed session to speak with her attorney after the hearing was over, and Cowsert and other Republican members of the committee left without addressing reporters.
In a court filing, the commission’s lawyers said the panel has not yet taken any steps to enforce the subpoena but plans to do so.
Democratic Committee member Sen. Harold Jones II told reporters the committee is politically motivated and “basically trying to serve the interests of former President Trump.” He said lawmakers should instead spend their time on issues that matter to the people of Georgia.
One of the alleged misconducts the committee is looking into is the hiring of Willis special prosecutor Nathan Wadewith whom they have a romantic relationshipto lead the prosecution of Trump and others. The resolution that established the commission says the romantic relationship amounted to a “clear conflict of interest and a fraud on the taxpayers” of the county and state.
Willis and Wade have recognized the relationship but have said it began after he was hired and ended before the charges against Trump were filed. They have also said they are splitting the cost of their trip equally.
Trump and other defendants argued that the relationship created a conflict of interest that Willis and her office should be disqualified from continuing to prosecute the case. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee in March reigned that Willis’ actions showed a “huge error in judgment,” but he found no conflict of interest that would disqualify Willis. He said she could continue her prosecution as long as Wade stepped aside, which he did.
Trump and others have appealed against that decision to the Georgia Court of Appeals, which has scheduled a case arguments for december.
One of the commission’s subpoenas requires Wills to produce documents relating to Wade, including documents relating to his employment and pay, documents relating to any money or valuables Wade and Willis may have exchanged, text messages and emails between the two, and their phone records.
The committee also requested documents her office sent in response to requests from the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as communications Willis and her office had with the White House, the U.S. Department of Justice and the House of Representatives regarding the 2020 presidential election. And they requested documents related to federal grant money Willis’ office received.
Willis’ attorneys — including former Democratic Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes — argued in a court filing that the subpoenas “are overbroad and not reasonably tailored to a legitimate legislative need” and that they “seek confidential and privileged information, as well as private and personal information that is not the legitimate purpose of a legislative subpoena.”
They are asking a judge to quash the subpoenas because they fall outside the legislative subpoena authority, because they were issued after the legislative session ended, and because they violate the separation of powers enshrined in the state Constitution. They are also asking that the subpoenas be quashed because they seek privileged and confidential information. Finally, they are asking that a judge permanently bar the committee members from pursuing or enforcing the subpoenas.
Attorneys for the committee wrote in a filing that Willis had used the wrong legal avenue to challenge her subpoenas; that she should have filed a motion to quash them. They also noted that neither Willis nor her attorneys ever approached the committee to ask that the scope of the subpoenas be limited or to ask for more time to respond or to postpone the committee hearing.
They wrote that subpoenas fall within the commission’s authority and that if Willis does not file a motion to quash them, the commission will seek to have them enforced by a judge.
