This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
President Trump's legal team has gone to an appeals court to try to obtain an order removing prosecutor Fani Willis from her "organized crime" case she created against Trump and more than a dozen others over their criticism of the handling of the 2020 election results.
Already, a judge has determined she had the "odor of mendacity" about her because of the appearance of misconduct and an inherent conflict of interest.
But the judge said she could continue on the case if her paramour, whom she had hired with tax money to work on the anti-Trump agenda, left.
Trump's lawyers are in the Georgia Court of Appeals explaining that simply isn't enough to make the case clean again.
And now they're being joined by a prominent legal team, the voices of the American Center for Law and Justice.
That organization announced it has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the appeals court calling for Willis to be removed from the case entirely.
The legal team noted the court has agreed to review the allegations against the prosecutor, and it is arguing for a determination she must go entirely because of her "gross misconduct.'
The organization explained, "As we told you when the trial judge's decision on Fani Willis first came out, the judge's ruling made simply no sense. The judge found as fact that Fani Willis' conduct had an 'appearance of impropriety,' based on her relationship with Nathan Wade. Nonetheless, the judge allowed Willis to proceed with the prosecution anyway. The facts are clear that Willis must be disqualified from overseeing the high-profile election interference case against President Trump."
The ACLJ listed the facts:
"Willis appointed her alleged romantic partner, Nathan Wade, as a special prosecutor – paying him over $650,000 in taxpayer money.
"She appears to have benefited personally from this appointment, taking lavish vacations funded by Wade's earnings from the case.
"Willis and Wade seemingly attempted to conceal their relationship, only admitting to it after being cornered by evidence."
What's present in the situation appears to be "corruption, cronyism, and abuse of power," the ACLJ said.
"How can the people of Georgia – or indeed, all Americans – have any faith in the integrity and impartiality of this prosecution? The Constitution guarantees the right to a fair trial, free from conflicts of interest or impropriety. Willis' actions have irreparably tainted this case," the ACLJ argues.
The lawyers noted, "The mere appearance of such misconduct is sufficient grounds for disqualification under Georgia law and ethical standards. We emphasized that even an appearance of impropriety is inherently unacceptable and erodes the public's trust in the judicial process. In the present case, merely stopping the continuation of the 'repeatedly'-made 'bad choices' by removing Nathan Wade is not enough."
The taint that attaches to the case through such conflicts cannot be corrected or remedied "after the fact," the brief argues.
