The attorney for Trump co-defendant Mike Roman, who brought abuse allegations against Willis and special counsel Nathan Wade three weeks ago, said on Feb. On the 15th, he subpoenaed both men to testify under oath at an evidentiary hearing on his motion to disqualify them. The lawsuit and charges against Roman were dismissed.
But a notice shared with Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee on Wednesday shows Roman's attorney, Ashley Merchant, is seeking to call at least 10 witnesses, including senior members of Willis' staff and Wade's associates. To prove his client's allegations of wrongdoing by the prosecutor. She has filed binding financial records with Wade and her law firm, which she seeks to support her claims, including that Wade used his income as special counsel to give her and Willis time off.
In addition to Willis and Wade, Merchant has issued subpoenas to several employees of the district attorney's office — including Dasha Young, an executive district attorney appointed to the Trump case; Thea Green, Willis' administrative assistant; Sonya Allen, an assistant district attorney who previously worked with Wade in Cobb County; Mike Hill, an investigator assigned to the Trump case; Dexter Bond, Chief Operating Officer of the Office; Capers Green, Office of Investigations Chief; and Thomas Riggs, an investigator assigned to Willis' defense team.
It's unclear whether Willis will seek to challenge his subpoena or the one issued to his employees. A spokeswoman for Willis declined to comment.
Other subpoenas were issued to Wade's current and former law partners, Christopher Campbell and Terence Bradley, and Robin Bryant-Yeardy, a longtime Willis associate who previously worked in the district attorney's office.
Last week, an attorney for Wade's estranged wife, Joycelyn Mayfield Wade, filed a notice of subpoena seeking information about the Atlanta home in their divorce case. According to public records, the address was previously attached to Bryant-Yeartie.
Reached by phone before giving notice that Merchant planned to call her as a witness, Bryant-Yeardy declined to comment. “If I get a subpoena, that's when I'll talk,” Bryant-Yeardy said before hanging up.
The merchant asked two Atlanta-area travel agencies — Vacation Express and H2O, Ltd. — for information on airline tickets, hotels and other travel expenses associated with Wade and Willis in 2020. Synovus Bank seeks financial records for Wade and his law firm.
The announcement comes a day after Wade and his estranged wife filed for a temporary settlement in their divorce. A last-minute deal led to the cancellation of Wednesday's hearing so that Wade could be questioned under oath about his finances — including his income as special counsel in the Trump case and his expenses such as buying airline tickets. He and Willis in October 2022 and April 2023. Joycelyn Wade also requested Willis' testimony in the divorce case.
Willis faces a Friday deadline to respond in writing to Roman's request to disqualify him and his office from the election case.
Last week, Trump and another co-defendant, Atlanta-area attorney Bob Seeley, Roman joined the motion to disqualify the prosecutors and dismiss the charges. Trump's lawyers accused Willis of inciting “racism” after Willis said racism was the reason for the attacks against him and Wade during a recent speech at a historically black church in Atlanta.
Willis' Jan. 14 comments before Big Bethel AME Church did not directly address the allegations against him or mention Wade or any of the defendants. But in what were his only public comments to even vaguely address Roman's misconduct claims, Willis questioned why critics attacked only Wade, who is black, and the two other outside attorneys named in the suit who are not white.
Roman, one of Trump's 14 remaining co-defendants in the criminal case and a top campaign aide during the 2020 election, has alleged in a court filing that he had a “personal, romantic relationship” with Willis Wade. was paid Over $653,000 Since he was tapped as outside counsel in the case in November 2021 by the district attorney's office.
Roman said Willis may have broken the law by appointing Wade as a special prosecutor. Wade and Willis, Roman's filing said, “are profiting substantially from this case at the expense of taxpayers”. Roman's filing, which had no evidence to support the sensational claims, demanded that prosecutors be disqualified and the charges against him dismissed.
Willis and Wade have not directly addressed or denied the allegations. But bank records that were later made public as part of Wade's divorce proceedings showed that Wade bought plane tickets for himself and Willis on two separate occasions — a trip to Aruba on American Airlines in October 2022 and a second trip to San Francisco on Delta in April 2023. Air Lines. It's unclear if Willis Wade returned the tickets or if he went on the trips. A spokeswoman for Willis declined to comment. Wade did not respond to requests for comment, and his divorce attorney declined to comment.
