The largest newspaper in Atlanta is putting the writing on the wall for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
Moments after the state Court of Appeals agreed to hear a challenge on Willis’ qualifications to continue prosecuting former President Donald Trump, a reporter for the Atlanta Constitution-Journal wrote up a story quoting experts who predict that the Democrat’s case may never be resolved before Election Day. The case has already been sidelined for months by revelations of her romantic relationship with former subordinate Nathan Wade. Now that an appeal has been granted, Willis will lose more weeks or months in her rush to prosecute Trump before Election Day.
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“There’s no way this case gets to trial this year,” Atlanta defense attorney Andrew Fleischman told the outlet. “I would expect the appeals court to issue its opinion sometime next year. This issue is important. You’re prosecuting the former president of the United States. This is obviously an area of the law that needs clarification. … It’s so important to the outcome of the case.”
Noting a three-judge screening panel likely took up Judge Scott McAfee’s “certificate of immediate review,” which allows defendants to appeal a ruling, the paper pointed out that just one of three judges must agree to hear an appeal. The court’s one-page order did not name which judge that may have been. McAfee told the paper that he will work to resolve pretrial motions in the case while a decision is pending.
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In a statement, Trump attorney Steve Saddow praised the Appeals Court for its decision. “President Trump looks forward to presenting interlocutory arguments to the Georgia Court of Appeals as to why the case should be dismissed and Fulton County DA Willis should be disqualified for her misconduct in this unjustified, unwarranted political persecution,” Sadow said.
The court on Wednesday also denied an appeal by Trump co-defendant Harrison Floyd arguing that Willis failed to properly receive jurisdiction from state election officials, a step typically taken before grand jury proceedings regarding election fraud.
The Constitution-Journal laid out the length of proceedings needed to reach a decision in the appeal:
Fulton Superior Court must first prepare the record from the first round of the disqualification fight and send it to the appeals court. Only then can the case be docketed and a panel of three judges be assigned via the court’s computer system, according to Christina Cooley Smith, deputy court administrator for the Court of Appeals.
It is then up to the judges to decide when they would like to hear oral argument, said Smith, but the matter must be decided within two terms of court. That means that if it’s docketed before July, it would need to be heard and decided before mid-March 2025.
The decision comes less than a day after a federal judge pushed off the state day for President Trump’s classified documents case, saying an indefinite pause is necessary while the Republican finished up his hush money trial in Manhattan. The judge in that case has required Trump to appear for proceedings every day or risk jail time. The decision by Florida U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, all but ensures the case won’t be resolved before November.