Fani Willis

Fani Taifa Willis[2] (FAH-nee,[2] born 1971[1] is an American attorney. She is the district attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, which contains most of Atlanta.[3] She is the first woman to hold the office title as the Fulton County district attorney.[4]

Fani Willis
District Attorney of Fulton County
Assumed office
January 1, 2021
Preceded byPaul Howard Jr.
Personal details
Born1971[1]
Inglewood, California
Political partyDemocratic
EducationHoward University (BA)
Emory University (JD)

Early life

Willis was born in Inglewood, California. Her father was a member of the Black Panthers and a criminal defense attorney.[5]

Willis graduated from Howard University and Emory University School of Law.[4] She spent 16 years as a prosecutor in the Fulton County district attorney's office. Her most prominent case was her prosecution of the Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal. In 2018, she went into private practice.[6] That year, she ran for a seat on the Fulton County Superior Court, and lost.[7] In 2019, Willis became chief municipal judge for South Fulton, Georgia.[5]

District attorney of Fulton County

In 2020, Willis was elected district attorney for Fulton County, defeating Paul Howard Jr., a six-term incumbent and her former boss.[8][9]

2020 election influence investigation
Main article: 2020 Georgia election investigation

On February 10, 2021, Willis launched a criminal investigation into Donald Trump's attempts to influence Georgia election officials—including the governor, the attorney general, and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger via a telephone call—to "find" enough votes to override Joe Biden's win in that state and thus undo Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election.[10][11][12]

In January 2022, she requested a special grand jury to consider charges of election interference by Trump and his allies.[13][14] In May, a 26-member special grand jury was given investigative authority and subpoena power and tasked with submitting a report to the judge and Willis on whether a crime was committed.[15]

Willis sent target letters to people she is investigating related to the fake electors plot. These include two Republican officials — State Senator Brandon Beach and David Shafer, chairman of the Georgia Republican Party[16] — and the 16 people who falsely presented themselves as electors.[17] She also sent a target letter to State Senator Burt Jones, but then a judge said she could not target Jones due to a conflict of interest.[18]

After hearing from 75 witnesses—including former US Sen. Kelly Loeffler, former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone,[19] and possibly Sidney Powell[20]—the special grand jury completed its work and was dissolved on January 9, 2023. On February 16, following a judge's order, parts of the report were released.[21] The judge did not permit the release of recommendations for possible charges,[22][23][24] intending to preserve the "due process" for anyone who might be indicted later.[25] Several days later, the foreperson of the grand jury hinted that the recommendations were not "some giant plot twist" and that no one would be "surprised".[26]

A different grand jury has yet to decide on charges.[24]

On April 24, 2023, Willis announced she would announce decisions to charge Trump and his associates during the Georgia Superior Courts' fourth term, perhaps as soon as mid-July 2023.[27]

Atlanta gang indictments

In May 2022, Willis' office indicted Young Thug for 56 counts of gang-related crimes under Georgia's RICO statute and felony charges for possession of illicit firearms and drugs that were allegedly discovered after a search warrant was executed. The rapper has been held in Cobb County jail since his arrest.[28][29]

Personal life

Willis and her husband divorced in 2005. They have two daughters together.[5]

References
  1. Binelli, Mark (February 2, 2023). "Fani Willis Took On Atlanta's Gangs. Now She May Be Coming For Trump". The New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  2. Rose, Ashtin (January 20, 2021). "You Can Call Her Madam DA; Fani Willis on Making History As Fulton County's First Woman District Attorney". South Atlanta Magazine.
  3. Murphy, Patricia; Bluestein, Greg; Mitchell, Tia (February 12, 2021). "The Jolt: Fani Willis takes center stage in the Trump show". Atlanta Journal Constitution. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  4. "Fani T. Willis, Fulton County District Attorney". Fulton County Government. 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  5. Ross, Janell (September 28, 2021). "Atlanta's First Black Female District Attorney Is at the Center of America's Converging Crises". Time. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  6. Umontuen, Itoro (August 12, 2020). "Fani Willis will become the next Fulton County DA, beating six-term incumbent Paul Howard". The Atlanta Voice. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  7. Catts, Everett (April 16, 2020). "Howard, Smith and Willis warring for Fulton's district attorney post". The Neighbor. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  8. Boone, Christian (August 14, 2020). "After historic victory, Fani Willis plans transformation of Fulton DA's office". Atlanta Journal Constitution. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  9. McDonald, R. Robin (August 11, 2020). "Fani Willis Sweeps Paul Howard to Take Over as Fulton County DA". Law.com. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  10. Hakim, Danny; Fausset, Richard (February 13, 2021). "In Georgia, a New District Attorney Starts Circling Trump and His Allies". The New York Times. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  11. Morris, Jason; Cole, Devan (February 10, 2021). "Prosecutors in Georgia open criminal investigation into Trump's attempt to influence election results". CNN. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  12. Fausset, Richard; Hakim, Danny (February 10, 2021). "Georgia Prosecutors Open Criminal Inquiry Into Trump's Efforts to Subvert Election". The New York Times. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  13. Hakim, Danny; Fausset, Richard (November 6, 2021). "Georgia Grand Jury Looms in Trump Inquiry". The New York Times. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  14. Hallerman, Tamar (January 20, 2022). "Fulton DA requests special grand jury for Trump probe". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  15. Murray, Sara; Morris, Jason (May 2, 2022). "Grand jury selected in Fulton County probe of Trump election interference in Georgia". CNN. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  16. Fausset, Richard; Hakim, Danny (July 15, 2022). "Prosecutor Warns Georgia Officials They May Face Charges in Trump Inquiry: The investigation could prove to be one of the most perilous legal problems facing the former president and his allies". The New York Times. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  17. Visser, Nick (July 20, 2022). "Fake Electors Are Now 'Targets' In Georgia Probe Of Trump's Effort To Overturn 2020 Vote". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  18. Mangan, Dan (July 25, 2022). "Georgia prosecutor Fani Willis disqualified from investigating Trump 'fake elector' in criminal probe". CNBC. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  19. Murray, Sara; Cohen, Zachary; Perez, Evan (October 20, 2022). "First on CNN: Former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, former US Sen. Kelly Loeffler testify to grand jury in Georgia investigating 2020 election interference | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  20. "Trump election probe in Georgia cites voting system breach". Associated Press. August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  21. Mangan, Dan; Breuninger, Kevin (February 16, 2023). "Georgia grand jury recommends perjury indictments in Trump election meddling probe". CNBC. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  22. Murray, Sara; Morris, Jason; Cole, Devan (January 24, 2023). "'Decisions are imminent' on charges in Trump's effort to overturn 2020 election in Georgia, Fulton County DA says". CNN Politics. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  23. Murray, Sara; Morris, Jason (January 9, 2023). "Georgia grand jury investigating Trump and 2020 election aftermath completes its work". CNN Politics. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  24. Polantz, Katelyn; Murray, Sara; Morris, Jason (February 13, 2023). "Parts of Georgia grand jury report on Trump and 2020 election aftermath to be made public". CNN Politics. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  25. Beckett, Lois; Stein, Chris; Beckett, Lois; Stein, Chris (February 13, 2023). "Why not make public the full special grand jury report? Two words: due process". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  26. Boboltz, Sara (February 21, 2023). "Trump Grand Jury Foreperson Says 'You Won't Be Too Surprised' By Indictment List". HuffPost. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  27. "Georgia prosecutor to reveal charging decisions in Trump probe this summer". NBC News. April 24, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  28. Staten, Adam (May 18, 2022). "Young Thug's 'Torturous' Jail Condition Complaints Dismissed by Officials". Newsweek. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  29. Brown, Preezy (April 4, 2023). "Young Thug Leaves Prison To Attend His Sister's Funeral". Yahoo News. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
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