BREAKING: Judge Hands Down Decision On Fani Willis Case

On Friday, Judge Scott McAfee issued his ruling in the case determining if Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis would be disqualified from the RICO case she brought against 45th President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants. McAfee, who previously donated to Willis during her campaign and worked under her at one point, ruled that special prosecutor Nathan Wade must be removed from the case or Fani Willis and the rest of her team must be removed.

McAfee explained in his ruling that no "disqualification of a constitutional officer necessary when a less drastic and sufficiently remedial option is available." McAfee concluded that there was an "appearance of impropriety" due to Willis's relationship with Wade but that there was no "actual conflict" that resulted from the affair. The judge clearly chose the middle-of-the-road option by giving the State a choice to choose who would be dismissed. "The prosecution of this case cannot proceed until the State selects one of two options," he wrote. Either "the District Attorney may choose to step aside, along with the whole of her office" or "Wade can withdraw."

"The other alleged grounds for disqualification, including forensic misconduct, are also denied. However, the established record now highlights a significant appearance of impropriety that infects the current structure of the prosecution team - an appearance that must be removed through the State's selection of one of two options. The Defendants' motions are therefore granted in part," he wrote. "This finding is by no means an indication that the Court condones this tremendous lapse in judgment or the unprofessional manner of the District Attorney's testimony during the evidentiary hearing. Rather, it is the undersigned's opinion that Georgia law does not permit the finding of an actual conflict for simply making bad choices — even repeatedly — and it is the trial court's duty to confine itself to the relevant issues and applicable law properly brought before it."

The judge's decision is a significant blow to Fani Willis but isn't the full victory that Trump and his co-defendants would have benefited most from. The evidence in the case was overwhelming, but it appears that the judge took a more cautious approach in his ruling to give both sides a benefit, with Willis staying on the case but forcing the removal of Wade. "Judge splits the baby. Obviously, Wade will go, and Fani will stay. It's a cowardly decision by the judge but still a major win for this defense team," conservative commentator Megyn Kelly wrote on X.

Read the full ruling here.

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