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A Georgia appeals court on Thursday disqualified Fani Willis, Fulton County Prosecutor to pursue the case against President-elect Donald Trump and his alleged co-conspirators for their efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
The long-awaited ruling, part of an already suspended criminal case against Trump, raises questions about whether the case can move forward in court. The appeals court ruled that Willis’ office could not pursue the case, so a new special prosecutor would have to be appointed for the case to continue.
The appeals court found that a “significant appearance of impropriety” was enough to potentially taint the case in the public eye. The appeals court decided, however, that it would not dismiss the sprawling racketeering conspiracy case entirely.
“While we recognize that an appearance of impropriety is generally not sufficient to warrant disqualification, this is the rare case in which disqualification is mandatory and no other remedy will be sufficient to restore public confidence in the integrity of these proceedings,” the court wrote in its Thursday statement. notice.
The court added: “We cannot conclude that the record also supports the imposition of the extreme sanction of dismissal of the indictment. »
Willis will continue to fight to stay on the case, as his team has asked the state Supreme Court to review the appeals court’s decision. CNN has contacted his office for comment.
Trump and some of his co-defendants attempted to have Willis, a Democrat, disqualified from the case because of a romantic relationship she had with Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor she hired to help her handle the case. The defendants argued that Willis benefited financially from her relationship with Wade, which defense attorneys said covered several vacations for the couple.
In their 2-1 majority opinion, Justices Trenton Brown III and Todd Markle wrote that the trial judge Scott McAfee’s March decision allowing Willis to pursue the case “did nothing to prevent a persistent appearance of impropriety that existed at times when DA Willis exercised his broad pretrial discretion over whom to prosecute and what charges to bring.”
Justice Benjamin Land, however, wrote in his dissent that the majority had exceeded its authority in overturning McAfee’s decision.
In making its decision, the panel of three appeals judges could only review McAfee’s decision. They were unable to independently review any of the allegations made by Trump or his co-defendants regarding Willis’ alleged affair with Wade or the details of his financial gain. Willis denies benefiting financially from the case and says his relationship with Wade did not influence his decision to sue.
“It is not our job to second-guess trial judges or substitute our judgment for theirs,” Land wrote in his dissent.
“We should resist the temptation to interfere with that discretion, including the chosen remedy, simply because we see things differently,” he continued. “To do otherwise violates well-established precedent, threatens the discretion afforded to trial courts, and blurs the distinction between our respective courts. »
Ashleigh Merchant, a defense attorney whose initial filing to disqualify Willis set off this chain of events, welcomed the appeals court’s decision and said in a statement to CNN that Willis should have voluntarily recused himself there. months ago.
“Failure to do so puts Judge McAfee in an untenable position,” said Merchant, who represents former Trump 2020 campaign official Mike Roman. “This failure of judgment is the exact reason Mr. Roman was forced to disqualify her in the first place, so we are grateful that the court agreed that she should not be allowed to pursue this case.”
Steve Sadow, Trump’s lead lawyer in the case, said Thursday’s ruling “ends a politically motivated persecution against the next president of the United States.”
Steven Cheung, Trump’s spokesman, said in a statement: “By granting President Trump an overwhelming mandate, the American people demanded an immediate end to the political militarization of our justice system and a rapid end to all hunts.” to the witches against him. We look forward to uniting our country as President Trump makes America great again. »
New calls could prolong the situation even further.
Trump and his co-defendants continue to contest the case with several other legal arguments that are still being considered by McAfee in the trial court. That includes challenges that raise immunity around the presidency and a state’s ability to bring a suit that duplicates federal allegations against Trump. who are now laid off.
Willis previously signaled in post-election court filings that she intended to pursue her lawsuit even as Trump was poised to return to the Oval Office.
The Georgia Supreme Court sits above the Georgia Court of Appeals which ruled Thursday and could review Willis’ ability to sue, meaning she would not be automatically removed from office. The Georgia Court of Appeals overturned oral arguments on Willis, and its decision Thursday was a surprise, with the court ruling only on the written materials and McAfee’s earlier decision.
The Georgia case also marks the most significant legal exposure that some of Trump’s top allies — including Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows — have faced for their efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
Once all potential appeals have been exhausted and the case is returned to Fulton County Superior Court, under Georgia law the case will automatically be reassigned to the Georgia Prosecutors Council, a bipartisan collaborative of six district attorneys and three solicitors general from all over. the state.
Executive Director Peter Skandalakis told CNN he would be responsible for “reviewing the pool of candidates” to appoint a new attorney to oversee the case. The pool includes anyone licensed to practice in the state, meaning a new district attorney could be appointed, a private attorney, the state attorney general or one of the members who sit on the board.
“Once I receive it, I begin the process of trying to find a conflict attorney, and I’m looking for someone who has the resources and who would be interested and actually willing to take on the case,” Skandalakis told CNN.
“It will not be an easy task,” he said.
This story has been updated with additional information and reaction.
CNN’s Paula Reid, Nick Valencia and Jason Morris contributed to this report.