John Clifford Floyd III, the father of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, testified under oath that it is a Black thing for individuals to keep months’ worth of cash stored in their homes. He testified during a hearing where defense prosecutors are seeking to have his daughter removed from former President Donald Trump’s election interference case over allegations about her romantic relationship with Fulton County special prosecutor Nathan Wade.
Willis’ investigation into purported election interference in Georgia led to a grand jury indicting the former president and 18 others in his orbit, accusing them of violating the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Trump has denied any wrongdoing in the case and pleaded not guilty to the 13 charges against him. Attorneys representing Michael Roman, a co-defendant in the Georgia case, are seeking to disqualify Willis from the case over her relationship with Wade, an attorney she brought onto the prosecution.
Defense lawyers alleged the pair benefited financially from taxpayers’ money. Willis admitted to having a personal relationship with Wade but argued it is not grounds to disqualify her from the Trump case. Floyd, a criminal defense lawyer by trade, explained that he had a fellowship at Harvard when Willis was around 3 years old and advised her to keep six months’ worth of cash.
Patricia Crouse, a political science practitioner in residence at the University of New Haven, said the disqualification attempts against Willis “is definitely a case of political optics over substance.” She added that it is “in the best interest of everyone” for Willis to recuse herself due to the potential over-arching effects on the criminal case.
