A Fulton County judge on Tuesday weighed arguments over whether District Attorney Fani Willis must comply with subpoenas issued by the Georgia state Senate committee investigating her office.
The dispute marks another chapter in the ongoing scrutiny of Willis, whose high-profile racketeering case against President-elect Donald Trump has been under intense public and legal examination.
The Legal Dispute Over Subpoena Power
The subpoenas, issued in August, demand testimony and documents from Willis. She has asked the court to nullify them, arguing the special Senate committee lacks the authority to issue subpoenas without a bill passed by the full General Assembly.
Roy Barnes, representing Willis and a former Democratic governor of Georgia, argued before the court:
“The operative word here is ‘General Assembly,’ not one house of the General Assembly. Words mean what they mean.”
The committee’s lawyers, however, contended that their resolution granted them investigative power, and nothing in the state constitution explicitly bars them from issuing subpoenas.
Legal experts say the case raises novel constitutional questions about legislative authority. Georgia attorney Madeline Summerville described it as “unprecedented,” noting that Republicans, who control the legislature, could have easily passed a bill to grant the committee explicit subpoena power.
Broader Criticism of Willis’s Office
The legal wrangling comes amid heightened scrutiny of Willis’s conduct, including allegations of mismanagement and improper use of public funds.
Critics, such as Georgia attorney Phil Holloway, have called her legal arguments “specious” and voiced concerns about her financial stewardship of taxpayer resources.
Willis has dismissed the legislative inquiry as politically motivated, calling it a “political quest” aimed at undermining her prosecution of Trump and 18 co-defendants for allegedly attempting to overturn the 2020 election results.
Yet, her office faces mounting challenges. The Georgia Court of Appeals is considering a motion to disqualify Willis from the Trump case after revelations of an undisclosed romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, the lead special prosecutor she hired. Public records show Wade was paid over $650,000 for his role, far exceeding typical compensation for public prosecutors.
Additional Legal Setbacks
Tuesday proved a challenging day for Willis, as two other legal matters drew headlines:
- Judicial Watch Victory: A judge ruled against Willis in a case brought by conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch, ordering her to release communications with special counsel Jack Smith after she failed to respond to court deadlines.
- Young Thug RICO Case Collapse: Her other major racketeering case, involving Grammy-winning rapper Young Thug and several co-defendants, ended embarrassingly. While some defendants had earlier pleaded guilty, the two remaining defendants were acquitted of all but one minor firearm charge, despite the case spanning over two years and significant taxpayer expense.
The subpoena dispute underscores broader questions about the limits of Willis’s authority and her management of high-stakes cases.
As the Fulton County judge deliberates on the Senate committee’s subpoena power, the outcome could set a precedent for legislative oversight of prosecutorial conduct in Georgia.
