No, no, no, this is the truth, the judge. It is a lie. It is a lie. Our relationship was not a secret. It was just private. Did you observe them do things that are common among people having a romantic relationship . Yes. I like grey goose. You never wrote him a check. I dont have checks. Cash is fungible. I gave my daughter her first cashbox and told her, always keep some cash. Most black folks, they hard cash. Im not on trial no matter how hard you try to put me on trial. Just some of the most memorable moments of fani willis and Special Prosecutor that she hired. Closing arguments are set to begin in moments in the hearing that could see both willis and wade disqualified from the Georgia Election meddling case and with that, so begins friday afternoon. Im john roberts in washington. Good to be back with you, cassandra. Great to be great to be with you. Anything could happen here. Im sandra smith. This is a live look right now at two courthouses. More than 500 miles apart. Willis is fighting to remain on the trump case. At issue, of course, the timing of that romantic relationship with nathan wade whether it created a Conflict Of Interest. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump is in florida. Where a judge is wearing a start the day for his classified documents case. John as scott mcafee is getting ready, lets go to our panel. Shannon bream. Gerry vaughn is fox news legal editor. Lets start with you. Based on what you have heard throughout this whole affair, where do you expect the judge is going to go in his ruling . Is starkly different than what we saw a couple weeks ago when you had them on the stand under oath saying this started after i hired him. We always expect these expenses. Theres nothing to see here. These allegations are nothing but a political witch hunt as we are trying to prosecute people that we argue tried to overturn the 2020 election but since then, we have had all kinds of new cellular data and texts and testimony that paint a very different picture which now asks the question about whether these two may have potentially perjured themselves. This judge is seen as neutral and fair and very contemplative. I dont think we will hear something from the bench but i dont think it will take them too long. This is Terrence Bradley asked on tuesday whether he lied about willis and wade. Listen here. Did you tell her any lies about mr. Wade and miss willis relationship . Expected i like did i lie . That is a simple question. You are a lawyer. Not that i recall. I dont recall. Is that something you normally do, mr. Bradley . Do you tell a lie about lies about their friends . Have i told lies about my friends . I cannot, your honor. Khyree, that was a Pretty Simple question. Yikes. It makes you question him as a friend and the reason they were getting to that point with him was because he had told the Defense Attorney in a text message that quote, Absolutely Wade and willis were romantically involved prior to when they put the event that they were in court and shannons point, the problem is if they relied on a court filing, that is a crime. And they would have to deal with that separately but that would almost certainly be grounds for disqualification and the fact that he said absolutely in the text, then cannot remember if he wrote the text and then went on to say, what i said, actually, i was just speculating. John you mentioned the text and bring up the text messaging. Ashleigh merchant starts out, why she would hire him is insane. Like just dating, dont hire him. You think it started before she hired him . Absolutely. It started when she left the d. A. s office and was judge in south fulton. Ashleigh merchant, like it started when she left the d. A. s office and was Terrence Bradley, the Municipal Court conference. Merchant. That is what i figured when he was married. A couple of hours later, is this accurate upon information and belief, willis and wade met while both were serving as Magistrate Judges and began a romantic relationship at the time. Municipal court, merchant, thank you. Bradley, but you cant put where they meet, not many people know that. He was afraid, shannon of being smoked out here and he was the source of this information and then when he got on the stand last week, all of it seemed to completely escape his memory. Shannon yes, there were a lot of i cant recall. But he tried to get out of this altogether because he said at one point he was a legal partner of nationwide nathan wade and that he served as an attorney and his worst case. And so this judge, scott mcafee, had a hearing of camera and said lets take a look at this. Is there privilege . What is going on here . He decided there was enough that Terrence Bradley need to move forward and take the stand and he cannot recall anything. The standard here is if theres evidence, it comes to an actual conflict or the appearance of one, so the judge has a lot of latitude and a lot of folks would argue race on what they have seen the last few weeks, you could argue that there is an appearance that there are some things that dont me all of the ethical standards that should be met. Sandra kerri, what we were hearing from the judge, it will be 90 minutes for both sides. Right now, the judge was just going around a few seconds ago. We will get in here and take his life for our viewers. Meanwhile, kerri, this was the willis friend and coworker contradicting quite clearly willis and wades claims in the timing of their relationship. This was another key moment. So you know that their personal relationship began shortly after this Municipal Court conference. Yes. And do you understand that their relationship began in 2019 and continue until the last time you spoke with her . Yes. Sandra all right, i mean, there were so many moments, kerri, where we could point to where the scott massey. Kerri and today we can also. The doors as part of the Closing Arguments with her Cell Phone Data from nathan wades phone should be admitted. Why does that matter . Because according to defense, that data shows that wade was in the neighborhood at least 35 times prior to when she hired him. It also shows according to their affidavit, 12,000 Cell Phone Interactions in that year. They would maybe say that is platonic. But nonetheless, it does us a better sense of the depth of their relationship prior to at least when they say the romance began. John what they are discussing now is whether or not they will hear more evidence either now or after Closing Arguments. And they are in here, more evidence later. The really interesting aspect, to the control room, this will be a call for number three here. Dont put it up just yet because i want to make this point. Ashleigh merchant has been around these circles in Fulton County in georgia for a long, long time. When i was in the Atlanta Bureau 2011 through 2016, she would come in a couple times a month to be an analyst on fox and fox business. She was friends with nathan wade. She was also friends with Terrence Bradley. In fact, now lets put it up on the screen. Ashleigh merchant, as she is discovering all of the stuff, text, Terrence Bradley and says, im nervous. This is huge. Bradley. Bradley . Back to you are huge. You will be fine. You are one of the best lawyers i know. Go be great. I would hazard to guess, shot into those relationships that she had with these two gentlemen professionally, they have been blown sky high but all this. I would say theres a little stress there have been to an up to her again and again after they have had all the conversations, those Text Messages are out there and to say i dont recall, it was speculating after it sounded like in these Text Messages he was urging her to move forward with this idea that he had information that was going to back her up. Remember also that the willis was disqualified back in 2022 over an earlier part of this investigation having to do with the Lieutenant Governor because she had taken part in some way connecting to a fundraiser for his democratic opponent and the judge said, she can be political but her cases cant be and so we will have to see if scott mcafee, the judge in this case, it follows along those same threats about whether or not this issue is has become political and whether theres been enough of a an appearance of conflict to create trouble. Sandra we will get in there life when it does happen. Kerri, to you in. This is willis in what was really a Game Changing moment in all of this. When she was she was offering her testimony, took the stand and said, she is not on trial. Watch. I object to you getting into peoples personal lives. You are confused. You think im on top trial. These people are on trial. Sandra going back to the very beginning, really remarkable how she came out in all of this. Kerri and the state of her trial is on trial because if she is disqualified in her office is disqualified, this will move be moved elsewhere and they will take a look at these charges against donald trump and the codefendants. There is typically something used against members of m. S. 13 and the mob and say, this is ridiculous. We are not bringing these charges but theres a lot at stake here. Kerri, we got to jump in because the Closing Argument are about to get underway in Fulton County and it looks like here we go. Stand by, 90 minutes per side. May it please the court, your honor, John Merchant on behalf of mr. Roseman by way of roadmap, the allocation of time and what im going to be covering. Ive been charged with talking to your on about the conflict issue and the appearance of conflict and what we believe the evidence to show on that issue. Mr. Saito, mr. Gillam will be talking more about the Forensic Misconduct piece of it. Miss Willis Church speech, statements made to the media. Fraud on the court. Frankly and the book that she gave. So i wont be discussing any of those issues. If you would like to ask me, i can address them. But that is going to be the focus of their presentation and then towards the end of the folks who may have issues specific Type Arguments for mine or the misconduct. But those are the two lanes that were going to be covering but im going to be doing the conflict piece of it for you and on that issue, your honor, this is a matter of First Impression in georgia. I cant find a single case that has been published by the Court Of Appeals or the Supreme Court that is based on these facts. There are of course a number of different Appellate Court cases that deal with conflict related issues and more importantly, appearance of conflict related issues and some of those are based in a state law. Some of them are based on the ethical rules that govern lawyers. Some of them are based upon the sixth amendment ri right of due process. I want to remind the court that we are here today on this motion to disqualify the willis and her office because of her judgment frankly. She is disinterested under the amendment and she is anything but that put the fact that these proceedings have taken this long to the convoluted way he we have made it through today, explain that xo as i present my arguments, i want court to understand that this court represents the guardrails for the sixth amendment and in this context and miss willis has already been disqualified once. So i would encourage the court to remember what judge mcburney did in his order disqualifying the same argument was made in that case as to whether or not there needs to be an actual Conflict Of Interest or whether or not the appearance of a Conflict Of Interest might be sufficient under the facts. I want to make clear to the court that the law in georgia suggests and is very clear that we can demonstrate an appearance of a Conflict Of Interest and that is sufficient. There is im going to be candid with the court. There is a Supreme Court decision from 1996 and then there are two Court Of Appeals decisions after that that deal frankly in some data that suggest that actual conflict is required. The Supreme Court of georgia since those decisions came down has made quite clear that the appearance of conflict standard still applies and the reason that is important is i think other the sixth amendment which is where we are at, in order to preserve the defendants rights under that provision and another quarterly provisions of georgia law. You have got to consider the appearance of a conflict. And the reason why the appearance of the conflict is so transient here is because if this court allows this kind of behavior to go on and allows the ace across the state by its order to engage in these kinds of activities, the entire Public Counsel confidence in the system will be shot and the integrity of the system will be undermined and so with those sort of Public Policy and constitutional principles, i wanted to return to the law in georgia on disqualification and your honor, im going to give you the law and im going to talk about the facts and how they apply to the law and if you want to talk about the text earlier, jump right in and i will be happy to do that. Im sure he probably knows all the law. But to give the skeleton out outline, the original seminal case that deals with Conflict Of Interest from the georgia Supreme Court is williams the state. That is 258 georgia 305 and they are basically two methods by which you can disqualified District Attorney. One of them is a Conflict Of Interest and i will suggest to the court that does not mean an actual conflict. That could mean an appearance of conflict as well and then Forensic Misconduct. Importantly, in the williams case, and i think this is important for the courts announces about the facts and where each box fixed into. The court said there is no clear Demarcation Line between Conflict Of Interest and Forensic Misconduct and given grounds for Disqualification Prosecutor might be classifiable as either, and i think that is important because we have facts that fit in the boxes. So if the state stands up and says, well, theres no actual conflict here, george, to the mean necessarily that it does not apply to the Forensic Misconduct. Typically Forensic Misconduct relates to statements of the prosecutor designed to impugn the character of the defendant before trial. And to affect the jury pool. Which we have here, which are not going to discuss. But the fact that we have here very much related to that issue and a crossover. Importantly, and i think this is important for the courts consideration of the facts of the court is willing might have is if you deny this motion, theres a good chance if it is reversed that we will be granted a new trial. So that means were going to have to do this all over again. In Amusement Sales Versus state 360, Georgia Appellate 727, that is a case that sites with words, which is physical president only. The court said if the assigned prosecutor has acquired a personal interest or stake in the connection the trial court abuses its discretion in denying a motion to disqualify him and the defendant is entitled to a new trial, even without a showing of prejudice, so that means if we show the court today and we have through the proceedings today and before that miss willis has developed a very personal interest in this case and your audit denies this motion coming back all over again. If the Appellate Courts say you were wrong. What is that personal interest . So that personal interest can be theres no definition of that under georgia law and it could be a personal financial interest. It could be a personal interest related to bias against a particular defendant, which sort of falls into the Forensic Misconduct box. We have here a very personal financial interest that has been laid out in terms of money received by miss willis as a result of the scheme that she sat up and to get to the issue of the personal interest in the context of an appearance, i think that is important. I do want to suggest to the court that there are a number of cases that postdate this actual Conflict Of Interest language that suggests in some of the cases from the 90s that you have to Pay Attention to what this looks like to the public. And i agree with all of the law and im sure the estate is going to stand here and say can be a speculative or conjectural time of personal interest. We dont have that here. We have something very concrete. As the judge put it, actual and probable not speculative and remote.