A Georgia judge ordered Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to turn over any records from special counsel Jack Smith or the US House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 attack, following a lawsuit by a conservative legal group related to the DA’s 2020 documents. election interference case.
The order follows a March lawsuit by the conservative nonprofit group Judicial Watch, which sued Willis after Fulton County said it had no record of a response from the special counsel’s office or the House Select Committee.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney on Monday ordered Willis to produce any records within five business days and ruled that he violated the state’s open records law by failing to respond to the lawsuit.
Judge McBurney imposed a default judgment, saying Willis had failed to put up a “meritorious defence” and instead had not been properly served.
“Consequently, Plaintiff is entitled to judgment per se as if all elements and paragraphs of the Complaint were supported by adequate and sufficient evidence. Here, this means that Plaintiff has established that Defendant violated the ORA by failing to deliver responsive records or otherwise notify Plaintiff. decision to withhold some or all,” said McBurney’s decision, which ordered Willis to turn over any records and pay the attorney. Judicial Guard fees.
Donald Trump and 18 others pleaded not guilty to all charges last year broad racketeering charge For an alleged attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia. The four defendants then took plea deals in exchange for agreeing to testify against other defendants.
Smith brought up federal election interference and previously classified documents against Trump both cases were dismissed because of presidential immunity after Trump’s re-election last month.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis examines the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump during a hearing in Fulton County Court on March 1, 2024, in Atlanta.
Alex Slitz/Pool/Getty Images
Trump’s legal team had already sought any communication between Willis and the House Select Committee based on a letter Willis wrote in December 2021 asking then-committee chairman Bennie Thompson for “access to records that may be relevant to our investigation.”
In a January court hearing, attorneys for the Fulton County district attorney’s office confirmed that any relevant records from the commission were made or that the records were public.
According to former prosecutor Nathan Wade, prosecutors met with the commission on January 6, but “no tangible documents were shared.”
Trump’s Georgia criminal case has been suspended after Trump and his co-defendants tried to disqualify Willis from the case because of her relationship with Wade.
Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee refused to disqualify Willis, but the case is on hold as Trump and his co-defendants appeal the decision.
The appeal’s oral argument was originally scheduled for Dec. 5, but it was it has been canceled unexpectedly last month without explanation.
