Attorney Ashleigh Merchant speaks during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on February 27, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Brynn Anderson-Pool/Getty Images)
Merchant was the first to allege in court filings that Willis had a conflict of interest in hiring Wade, her then-boyfriend, to prosecute the election interference case. She claimed that Willis had financially benefited from the relationship in the form of vacations she took with Wade, whose firm was compensated by taxpayers for working the Trump case.
Documents submitted to the court by Merchant revealed that Willis and Wade had taken several trips together and that Wade's law firm had billed taxpayers $650,000 at a rate of $250 an hour since his hiring.
Both Wade and Willis had denied that they were in a romantic relationship prior to his hiring. During a two-day evidentiary hearing in February, they each testified that they had split the cost of their shared trips. Willis told the court she reimbursed Wade for her share of the trips in cash.
During a two-day evidentiary hearing in February, Merchant called witnesses who testified that the couple had begun their affair in 2019 after meeting at a conference.
TRUMP ATTORNEY REACTS TO FULTON COUNTY JUDGE'S FANI WILLIS DECISION: ‘PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT’
Judge Scott McAfee at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta on February 15. (Alyssa Pointer, Getty Images)
Merchant at one point referenced text messages between her and Bradley in which she had asked Bradley if he thought the relationship started before Willis hired Wade in 2021. Bradley responded "absolutely" in the text exchange.
However, McAfee said Friday that he was "unable to place any stock" in Bradley's testimony.
In his order, McAfee said that Bradley’s "inconsistencies, demeanor, and generally non-responsive answers left far too brittle a foundation upon which to build any conclusions."
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"While prior inconsistent statements can be considered as substantive evidence under Georgia law, Bradley’s impeachment by text message did not establish the basis for which he claimed such sweeping knowledge of Wade’s personal affairs," McAfee said.
The judge ruled that while neither side had conclusively proved when the relationship began, there was "an appearance of impropriety" that requires either Willis or Wade to be removed from the Trump case.
Fox News Digital's Brianna Herlihy contributed to this report.
Chris Pandolfo is a writer for Fox News Digital. Send tips to chris.pandolfo@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @ChrisCPandolfo.
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