Fulton DA Fani Willis on Sunday took to the pulpit and spent some 35 minutes blaming the newest accusations against her on race - defense attorney says nothing could be further from the truth
Disclaimer: It is important to stipulate that no formal charges have been filed in this case and that all parties involved should be considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law if it is ever determined that criminal proceedings are warranted. Wild Orchid Media remains unbiased and takes no sides in these issues. We serve only to report the facts as they become available.
Written by Chief Political Correspondent Kurt Dillon - Because the truth matters!
Approximately one week following the accusation that Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis (D) engaged a romantic partner to oversee an extensive election-interference case against former president Donald Trump and subsequently profited from his salary, Willis on Sunday decided to take to the pulpit before the congregation of a historic Black church in Atlanta to speak on the allegations for the first time -- at least a little.
In her address, however, she opined that racism was at the core of the allegations.
While not directly addressing the more sensational claims, Willis did assert that she had the right to hire special prosecutors, though we were unable to find any evidence that her hiring of special prosecutors was an issue or any part of the new allegations against her.
During her racially charged 35-minute speech at the Big Bethel AME Church, and before its all-black congregation, Willis suggested that the criticism against her, a Black woman, and Wade, a Black man, was influenced entirely by race.
Willis criticized those who seized on the allegations, singling out Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who has advocated for a criminal investigation into Willis and Wade.
The DA defended Wade's professional credentials though never mentioning the still-married man with two young children by name. She went on to emphasize his "impeccable credentials" and "superstar" prosecutorial status, along with his "decades of experience", though we could find no evidence that Wade has ever prosecuted a felony case at any point in his career, let alone RICO charges against the former President of the United States.
Willis did not directly address the claim of a romantic relationship between them but referred to herself as a "flawed" public servant, drawing parallels to Martin Luther King Jr.'s imperfections.
Despite the pending hearing to address the allegations, Willis asserted her right as district attorney to appoint a special prosecutor and highlighted the equal pay for all three outside attorneys. She concluded by describing the recent days as a low point in her tenure, facing threats and attacks tied to her handling of the Trump case.
Acknowledging the toll of the allegations, Willis highlighted the loneliness and challenges of her role, expressing disappointment with her critics, including Greene. She questioned why her hiring of a diverse legal team, including Wade, John Floyd, and Anna Cross, was being selectively attacked.
She went on to say:
"They call me the N-word more than they call me Fani."
Ashleigh Merchant, Mike Roman's attorney, denied DA Willis' allegations that race was in any way a factor. Ms Merchant said:
"This has nothing to do with the color of [Nathan Wade's] skin."
A spokesperson for the Fulton DA's office released a statement shortly after the accusations were filed with the court that a direct response to the allegations will be made in a court filing soon.
According to many local and national media outlets, the filing from Trump's co-defendant, Mike Roman, lacked actual evidence to substantiate it. They claim that the court filing by Ms. Merchant does not provide any direct evidence to support her client's claims and only cites "sources with knowledge".
However, Roman's attorney quickly countered that assertion by pointing out that the evidence, which was obtained through Wade's divorce filings with family court, is still under seal and cannot be made public until they are released from that seal but as official court documents, they definitely amount to actual evidence. It has also since been made public that DA Fani Willis was made to testify at Wade's divorce proceedings, only further complicating the situation.
Of course, this is a developing story, and you can count on Wild Orchid Media to keep you up to date on new revelations as new information becomes available
For more information on this and other stories we cover, please visit our website at www.veracityreport.org.
The Sources used to help verify and confirm the information in this article were: The New York Post, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Spreely News, USA Today, KRQE News, The Last Refuge, Newsmax, Fox News, Yahoo News, and The Washington Post.
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