A key witness in the effort to disqualify the Georgia prosecutor leading the election interference case against Trump provided far less supportive testimony than expected.
Text messages later revealed the witness, lawyer Terrence Bradley, had actively helped the defense for months by providing insider knowledge about the romantic relationship between the prosecutor, Fani Willis, and a staff member she hired, Nathan Wade.
Bradley suggested the relationship began before Wade’s hiring, contrary to his equivocal statements in court.
Defense attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, said, “I am nervous.”
“This is huge,” she said.
Bradley said, “You are huge. You will be fine.”
Merchant said to Bradley, “Do you think it started before she hired him?”
“Absolutely,” said Bradley.
Merchant said, “I protected you completely.”
“I kept you out of it,”
Bradley said, “You are my friend and I trust you.”
The defense argued this amounted to an improper conflict of interest, as Wade had profited from work on the case.
Steven Sadow, a lawyer for Trump said, “Why would you speculate and say that in a text?”.
“I don’t recall why I thought that it started at that time,” Bradley replied.
While the testimony may undermine the witness’s credibility, it does not directly impact the underlying allegations against Trump in the election interference investigation.
The case has been embroiled in an extraordinary process examining the prosecutors’ conduct.
