Fani Willis, the district attorney of Futon County, Georgia, recently lashed out at members of the Georgia Senate for investigating her. She claimed the investigation was “unlawful” and declared that she would not answer subpoenas issued by the body.
Georgia Senate Republicans established a committee earlier this year to investigate allegations of misconduct made against Willis, a Democrat, who is currently prosecuting nineteen people—including former President Donald Trump—for trying to overturn the state-certified results of the 2020 Presidential election.
In a statement to reporters on May 6, Willis claimed that she had not, in any way, broken the law.
Willis was swept up in a scandal as the result of her romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor she selected to help her with her case against Trump. The relationship was improper, it was argued, and that impropriety should compel Willis to recuse herself from the case. In the end, the judge allowed her to persist in her prosecutorial capacity so long as Wade was removed from the case. As a result, Wade resigned, but the decision to allow Willis to remain on the case is currently on appeal. That scandal occasioned the formation of the state Senate’s special committee.
The committee is looking into possible conflicts of interest on the part of Willis, as well as allegations that she misused public funds. The committee met for a hearing on May 3, and members of the committee have threatened to change existing laws, or to enact new ones, to target the Willis.
Willis is adamant that the investigation is not only improper, but is politically motivated, and she says she is determined to refuse to cooperate and to fight it at every opportunity. According to Willis, the committee does not have the authority to subpoena her. They should learn the law, she said, because she will not appear in any venue that is unlawful. She reiterated that she has not, in any way, broken the law.
