富尔顿县地方检察官法尼·威利斯周日上午，她在亚特兰大的一所教堂发表了激动而充满激情的讲话，似乎首次承认了上周对她的婚外情指控，同时还为她请来的特别检察官进行了辩护选举干预案反对唐纳德·特朗普。
“我希望你们这一周我看起来不像我经历过的那样，”她周日在大伯特利非洲卫理公会圣公会教堂庆祝马丁·路德·金日时开玩笑说。
前总统特朗普在佐治亚州选举干预案中的一名共同被告正寻求撤销对他的起诉，并取消DA Willis的资格，指控她与她引入该案的一名最高检察官“建立了私人的浪漫关系”，据称这导致他们两人都获得了经济利益。
在周一提交的法庭文件中，特朗普前竞选工作人员迈克尔·罗曼(Michael Roman)指控威利斯可能犯下了“欺骗公众诚实服务的行为”，理由是她“故意未能”披露据称她“个人从中受益”的所谓关系。
罗曼的律师阿什丽·麦钱特(Ashleigh Merchant)在127页的文件中称，检察官内森·韦德(Nathan Wade)“缺乏相关经验”，但自被任命担任这一角色以来，他已支付了约65万美元的法律费用——文件称这是一种“自私的安排”。特朗普的律师周五在法庭上表示，他们正在考虑加入对威利斯的指控。
在周日直播的讲话中，威利斯反复提到自己是“有缺陷的”和“不完美的”
威利斯还表示，她“有点困惑”为什么这么多人质疑让多名特别检察官参与此案的决定，尽管她从未提到韦德的名字，但她称他是一位“伟大的朋友”，与其他人获得同等报酬，同时广泛捍卫他对这份工作“无懈可击的资历”——暗示对他的攻击是出于种族动机。
“我任命了三名特别顾问。我有权这么做。付给他们相同的时薪，”威利斯说。“他们只攻击一个。我雇佣了一个白人女性:一个很好的私人朋友和伟大的律师，一个超级明星，我告诉你。我雇佣了一个白人:聪明，我的朋友，一个伟大的律师。我雇佣了一个黑人，另一个超级明星，一个好朋友，和一个好律师。”
威利斯从未否认或直接回应她和韦德有不正当关系的指控。她继续吹捧韦德的简历，说他被另一个县的共和党人雇用时，工资是他的两倍多，而且他“担任过检察官、刑事辩护律师、特别助理检察长。”
"当他们只质疑一个人时，难道不是他们在打种族牌吗?"她说。
2023年8月14日，亚特兰大，富尔顿县地方检察官Fani Willis在富尔顿县政府大楼的新闻发布会上发言。
乔·雷德尔/盖蒂图片社，档案
威利斯周日发表了超过30分钟的情绪化演讲，详细描述了她在担任富尔顿县检察官和起诉特朗普案件时所面临的困难。她谈到感觉“孤立”、“孤独”、“暗箭伤人”和面临持续的死亡威胁，迫使她离开自己的家。
“我厌倦了被残酷对待，”她说。
威利斯读了一封她说自己本周写给上帝的信，她在信中说自己“不配”得到这份工作:“主啊，即使是现在，我仍然觉得不配得到这份荣誉，”她一边读信一边说，似乎有些哽咽。
“一个离婚的单身妈妈，她不属于正确的社会群体。不一定来自正确的家庭。没有正确的血统。威利斯说:“对于地位低下的我来说，这个任务实在是太高了。
谈到对她的威胁，通常是由种族引起的，她说她和她的家人的生命“经常受到威胁，我现在认为如果我一周没有两次死亡威胁，那就不正常了。”
“他们叫我N字，而不是叫我Fani，”她说，同时指出她的家已经被“多次炸弹袭击”她说她现在“大多数日日夜夜”都与世隔绝。
威利斯还特别点名佐治亚州众议员马乔里·泰勒·格林。
“我绝不想像那些攻击我的人一样。我永远也不想成为马乔里·泰勒·格林那样的人，她从未见过我，却让自己的灵魂充满了仇恨，”她说。
尽管如此，威利斯吹捧她的团队的成就，说他们有“胜利，胜利，胜利”和95%的定罪率。
“我感谢你让我变得更强大的每一次攻击，”她说。
罗曼，特朗普和其他17人在8月份对所有指控不认罪全面的敲诈勒索起诉涉嫌试图推翻佐治亚州2020年总统选举的结果。被告肯尼斯·切塞布罗、西德尼·鲍威尔、耶拿·埃利斯和斯科特·霍尔随后接受了认罪协议，以换取同意指证其他被告。
前总统抨击地方检察官的调查是出于政治动机。
Fulton County DA Fani Willis defends special prosecutor following allegation of romantic relationship
Fulton County District AttorneyFani Willisspoke at a church in Atlanta Sunday morning where she gave emotional and passionate remarks that appeared to acknowledge for the first time the affair allegations leveled against her last week, while also defending the special prosecutor she brought in for theelection interference caseagainst Donald Trump.
"I hope for y'all this week I don't look like what I've been through," she joked as she spoke Sunday at the Big Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church during a service to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
One of former President Trump's co-defendants in his Georgia election interference case is seeking to dismiss the indictment against him and disqualify DA Willis, alleging she "engaged in a personal, romantic relationship" with one of the top prosecutors she brought in to work on the case, which allegedly resulted in financial gain for both of them.
In the court filing Monday, former Trump campaign staff member Michael Roman accused Willis of having potentially committed "an act to defraud the public of honest services" based on her "intentional failure" to disclose the alleged relationship that she allegedly "personally benefitted from."
The 127-page filing from Roman's attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, alleged the prosecutor, Nathan Wade, has a "lack of relevant experience" but has been paid approximately $650,000 in legal fees since being appointed to the role -- which the filing claims was a "self-serving arrangement." Trump's attorney said in court on Friday that they're considering joining in the complaint against Willis.
During her remarks Sunday, which were livestreamed, Willis repeatedly referred to herself as "flawed" and "imperfect."
Willis also said she was "a little confused" why so many questioned the decision to bring in multiple special prosecutors to the case, and though she never mentioned Wade by name, she called him a "great friend" who was paid equally to others while extensively defending his "impeccable credentials" for the job -- suggesting the attacks on him were motivated by race.
"I appointed three special counselors. It's my right to do. Paid them all the same hourly rate," Willis said. "They only attack one. I hired one white woman: a good personal friend and great lawyer, a superstar, I tell you. I hired one white man: brilliant, my friend, and a great lawyer. And I hired one Black man, another superstar, a great friend, and a great lawyer."
Willis never denied or directly addressed the allegations she and Wade had an inappropriate relationship. She continued to tout Wade's résumé, saying he was paid more than double when hired by a Republican in another county, and that he "served as a prosecutor, a criminal defense lawyer, special assistant attorney general."
"Isn't it them playing the race card when they only question one?" she said.
Speaking for more than 30 minutes, Willis' emotional speech Sunday detailed at length the difficulties she has faced in her position as Fulton County DA and prosecuting the Trump case. She spoke about feeling "isolation," "loneliness," "backstabbing" and facing constant death threats that have forced her out of her home.
"I am tired of being treated cruelly," she said.
Willis read a letter she said she wrote to God this week in which she said felt "unworthy" of the job: "Lord, even right now, I continue to feel unworthy of the honor," she said as she read the letter, while appearing to get choked up.
"A divorced single mom who doesn't belong to the right social groups. Doesn't necessarily come from the right family. Doesn't have the right pedigree. The assignment was just too high for lowly me," Willis said.
Speaking about threats against her, often fueled by race, she said she and her family members' lives have been "threatened so regularly, I now think it's not normal if I don't have two death threats a week."
"They call me the N-word more than they call me Fani," she said, while noting that her home has been swept "multiple times for bombs." She said she now spends "most days and nights" in isolation.
Willis also specifically called out Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
"I never want to be like those who attack me. I never want to be like Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has never met me but has allowed her spirit to be filled with hate," she said.
Still, Willis touted the accomplishments of her team, saying they have "wins, wins, wins" and a 95% conviction rate.
"I thank you for every attack that makes me stronger," she said.
Roman, Trump and 17 others pleaded not guilty in August to all charges in asweeping racketeering indictmentfor alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia. Defendants Kenneth Chesebro, Sidney Powell, Jena Ellis and Scott Hall subsequently took plea deals in exchange for agreeing to testify against other defendants.
The former president has blasted the district attorney's investigation as being politically motivated.
