“This is highly significant. It means the defense is permitted to apply to the Georgia Court of Appeals for pretrial review of the Judge’s order refusing to dismiss the case or disqualify Fulton County DA Willis.”
In an order issued on Wednesday morning, Judge Scott McAfee has granted the request from Trump and other Georgia RICO defendants to appeal the judge’s ruling not to disqualify Fulton County DA Fani Willis from the case.
Steve Sadow, lead defense counsel for Trump, said in a statement, "Judge McAfee has granted the motion for a certificate of immediate review filed by President Trump and eight other defendants. This is highly significant. It means the defense is permitted to apply to the Georgia Court of Appeals for pretrial review of the Judge’s order refusing to dismiss the case or disqualify Fulton County DA Willis. The defense is optimistic that appellate review will lead to the case being dismissed and the DA being disqualified," Fox 5 reported.
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View on XOn March 15, McAfee ruled that Willis could remain on the case if Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor in the case and with whom Willis had a romantic relationship with, recused himself. Defendant Michael Roman and his attorneys filed a motion in January to disqualify Willis from the case over allegations that she had an improper relationship with Wade, and that Willis had benefited financially by hiring Wade. Wade recused himself from the case later in the day.
The defendants have 10 days to file their case with the Georgia Court of Appeals, which has 45 days to decide whether to hear the case or not.
Defendants in the case filed a motion on Monday requesting to be able to appeal McAfee's decision.
"The March 15 Order is of exceptionally great importance to this case, substantially impacting Defendants' rights to due process," the defense team wrote. "Additionally, given the lack of guidance from the appellate courts on key issues, and the fact that any errors in the March 15 Order could be structural errors that would necessitate retrial(s), the grant of a certificate of immediate review is both prudent and warranted."
The defendants' lawyers cited McAfee's March 15 order's findings that Willis' actions "created an appearance of impropriety and an 'odor of mendacity' that lingers in this case, as well as the continuing possibility that 'an outsider could reasonably think that District Attorney Willis is not exercising her independent professional judgment totally free of any compromising influences.'"
They went on to argue that the case law warrants "dismissal of the case, or at the very least, the disqualification of the District Attorney and her entire office," adding that "the resignation of Mr. Wade is insufficient to cure the appearance of impropriety the Court has determined exists."
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