Fani Willis risks blowing Georgia election case to ‘smithereens’ in upcoming hearing: legal expert

A superior court judge has called for a hearing Wednesday in which Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will be asked to make a “good faith” estimate of the length of the Georgia election conspiracy case – and a legal expert suggested she better get it right.

Former federal prosecutor Harry Litman said in a social media post that Judge Scott McAfee’s hearing puts Willis in a tough spot in which she risks damaging her case against Donald Trump and his 18 co-defendants, indicted on allegations they tried to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election result. The case is being charged under the state’s racketeering law.

McAfee called for the hearing at 1 p.m. Wednesday local time to address co-defendants Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell’s motions to sever their cases from the rest of the co-defendants, according to court filings obtained by Politico’s Kyle Cheney.

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He also asked Willis for a “good faith estimate of the time reasonably anticipated to present the State’s case during a joint trial of all 19 co-defendants, and alternatively any divisions thereof, including the number of witnesses likely to be called and the number of exhibits likely to be introduced.”

Litman said Willis’ experience trying RICO cases suggests a lengthy trial, noting past cases such as the YSL and Young Thug RICO trial that started in January but remains mired in jury selection, and the Atlanta public schools cheating case that took more than seven months.

“If Willis comes in with an estimate along the lines of previous trials –8 months or more -- it will basically blow to smithereens the scheduling of the various trials. And hard to see how she can provide a ‘good-faith’ estimate that's way lower than the previous teacher RICO,” Litman said.