Fani Willis accused of paying ‘lover’ working on Trump RICO case more than other experts: report

A new report has revealed that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis paid her alleged romantic partner Nathan Wade nearly double the hourly rate of one of the state’s leading RICO experts on the case against Trump. Both are special prosecutors in the case. 

A contract document obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation revealed that John Floyd was paid an hourly rate of $150 per hour. Floyd is reportedly considered one of Georgia’s top experts on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statutes. 

Wade, who was appointed special prosecutor by Willis, was paid $250 per hour. Wade previously worked in private practice as a trial attorney, working on contract disputes and family law.  

One of the 19 codefendants in the Georgia election case claimed in a recent motion that the case should be dismissed, alleging that Willis benefitted from giving Wade a "lucrative" contract. Wade reportedly used that money to take Willis on lavish vacations. 

Wade has been paid almost $654,000 in legal fees since January 2022, payments authorized by Willis. Wade filed for divorce on Nov. 2, 2021, the day after his contract with Willis began. 

On Sunday, Willis responded to the allegations for the first time, addressing a crowd in Atlanta’s Big Bethel AME Church. Willis claimed that all her special counsels received the same rate of pay.

“I’m a little confused. I appointed three special counsels, as is my right to do, paid them all the same hourly rate. They only attack one,” Willis said. “I hired one white woman, a good personal friend and great lawyer, a superstar, I tell you. I hired one white man, brilliant, my friend and a great lawyer. And I hired one black man, another superstar, a great friend and a great lawyer … First thing they say: ‘oh, she [is going to] play the race card now.'”

"You cannot expect black women to be perfect and save the world." 

That third special counsel, Anna Cross, began a contract with Fulton County on July 15, 2022 at a rate of $250 per hour, according to the DCNF. Cross. has 20 years of experience as a prosecutor and has represented the state in multiple high-profile homicide cases. 

The outlet noted that "it’s possible Floyd was later paid at a higher rate, as the contract the DCNF obtained only extends through April 2022." 

Philip Holloway, an Atlanta-based criminal defense attorney and legal analyst, told the outlet, "If the allegations about his lack of felony trial experience are true, $250 per hour is unreasonably high. It could be argued that any amount is too high to pay someone with no felony trial experience to come in as lead counsel in the biggest, most complex criminal case in the history of Georgia."