One of former President Donald Trump’s co-defendants in the Georgia 2020 election subversion case is suing the Fulton County district attorney’s office, accusing prosecutors of withholding information that the lawsuit claims could prove allegations of an improper romantic relationship between District Attorney Fani Willis and her top deputy on the case.
Lawyers for the co-defendant, Mike Roman, said they’ve filed a civil lawsuit seeking documents and other information and accusing Willis’s office of violating Georgia’s Open Records Act, which allows the public to access certain government documents.
Willis contends her office has turned over some documents and that some of the records being sought don’t exist, according to a letter her office sent last week, addressing the records requests.
“Despite consistent communication, you imply that this office has failed to meet its obligation under the Georgia’s Open Records Act – respectfully, we disagree with your disingenuous implication,” the office wrote in the letter.
Roman’s lawsuit is seeking the release information ahead of a scheduled evidentiary hearing on February 15 when Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee will hear arguments over efforts to disqualify Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade because of the alleged affair and financial ties.
Roman, joined by Trump, also have asked the judge to dismiss the case.
Willis and Wade have not publicly addressed the allegations, and McAfee has ordered Willis to respond in writing to the court by the end of this week.
Roman, a former Trump 2020 campaign official, first surfaced the allegations in a court filing earlier this month that Willis and Wade were romantically involved and that he used money he billed the district attorney’s office for his work on the case to take her on lavish vacations.
“Mr. Roman has asserted that Willis and Wade should be disqualified because Willis used taxpayer money to pay Wade, with whom she has had a romantic relationship at the time, and, in turn, has received financial benefits from such payments in the form of vacations, hotel stays and other personal gifts,” Roman’s lawyers wrote in the civil lawsuit seeking records.
They added that they believe the use of money budgeted to the district attorney’s office “is of utmost importance in evaluating whether Willis and Wade have an irreparable and fatal conflict of interest and whether, and to what extent, Willis has otherwise used public monies for her personal gain.”
In the new lawsuit, Roman’s lawyers claim that Willis’ office “is in in clear violation of the Act, appears to be intentionally withholding information in advance of scheduled evidentiary hearings.”
They are also asking to see “numerous categories of documents that still have not been made available,” according to the lawsuit. Their records requests had sought a range of information such as invoices, contracts and correspondence.
Georgia’s Open Records Act law requires a “response” within three business days of receipt of a request.
Willis’s office said in their letter that they have responded to the records requests and indicated the open-records matters would be closed soon.
Trump and the 14 remaining co-defendants were indicted by Willis last summer over attempts to overturn the 2020 election. No trial date has been set yet. Willis has asked for trial date to be scheduled for August.
Four other co-defendants have already pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors to testify in the case.
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