On Tuesday evening, Terrence Bradley was back on the witness stand in a Georgia courtroom regarding the state criminal charges against Donald Trump for election interference. He was there to testify about the romantic relationship between Atlanta’s Democrat District Attorney, Fani Willis, and Nathan Wade, the man she hired to prosecute Donald Trump. Mr. Bradley – Wade’s former divorce lawyer and legal practice partner – was expected to confirm that their relationship predated Willis’ election to her office, as he had stated outside of court. Instead, Bradley refused to commit to those details under oath, avoiding implicating Willis or Wade and trashing his credibility.
Fani’s Folly Victim Tally Grows
Mr. Bradley refused to testify about these matters the last time he was called as a witness, citing attorney-client privilege. Bradley had spoken with Ms. Ashleigh Merchant, lawyer for Trump co-defendant Mike Roman, texting her details about the timing of the prosecutors' romance and stating that it had started in 2019. Tuesday’s hearing happened only after Wade and Bradley lost a bid to rely on attorney-client privilege.
The court had to wait for Bradley to get that refusal, who said he had a medical issue preventing him from testifying. Perhaps it’s the weight of the world on his shoulders? Reports indicate Judge Scott McAfee scheduled the hearing urgently because of Bradley’s poor health. He seemed crushed by the burden of his decision to first tell on his former partner, then refuse to admit it.
The examination of Mr. Bradley more resembled a dentist pulling teeth than an attorney’s examining a witness. He tried his best to refuse to answer every question using various techniques, including changing a question by restating it and then answering that. When all his efforts at evasion were exhausted, Bradley simply refused to agree he knew just about anything at any particular time. When did Mr. Wade and Ms. Willis start a romantic relationship? He just couldn’t say.
The Inartful Dodger
What happened to Bradley's previous certainty that the dalliance began during 2019, or at least well before Willis was elected district attorney? That answer was the icing on the cake. When asked why he had previously stated he could pinpoint a time, Bradley said that he had only been speculating!
Law professor and legal commentator Jonathan Turley, a favorite of conservatives, tweeted:
“The Bradley testimony was grinding but telling. There was the ‘artful dodger,’ and then there was Bradley. Repeating ‘I speculated’ was an inartful and unconvincing evasion. What remains is his text, which was sent before he was under all of this coercive pressure."
Ashleigh Merchant filed a motion to disqualify Ms. Willis and her office. The basis is that Willis appointed her lover (Mr. Nathan Wade) to prosecute Trump, that Wade is unqualified, and that Willis funneled outsized payments to Wade, who then lavished her with travel and gifts. After Tuesday’s hearing, Judge McAfee scheduled a hearing for Friday, March 1, to hear final arguments from the lawyers on the defense motion. He will rule on the petition, whose results could include anything from no change in Trump’s charges to dismissal of the indictment.
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