Kathianne
02-23-2024, 01:22 PM
Just wow!
https://www.ajc.com/politics/breaking-cellphone-data-raise-questions-about-start-of-willis-wade-relationship/SFVMYPTD2RD3HMZYOH3377CNNE/
POLITICSDefense says cellphone data raises questions about start of Willis-Wade relationship
Thousands of texts between DA and special prosecutor in 2021, court filing says
The personal relationship between Fulton County DA Fani Willis, right, and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, left,has come under scrutiny during the Georgia election interference case. (Alyssa Pointer & John Bazemore/AP)
Credit: AP
The personal relationship between Fulton County DA Fani Willis, right, and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, left,has come under scrutiny during the Georgia election interference case. (Alyssa Pointer & John Bazemore/AP)
By Bill Rankin,
David Wickert and
Tamar Hallerman
Updated 2 hours ago
Nathan Wade appeared to make at least 35 visits to the Hapeville neighborhood where Fani Willis was living before the district attorney hired him to lead Fulton County’s election interference prosecution, according to cellphone data included in a court submission filed Friday.
The filing, by attorneys for Donald Trump, raises fresh questions about the relationship between the two prosecutors, which the former president and other defendants argue has tainted the case against them and should result in Willis and her office being disqualified.
Trump’s lawyers relied on data collected from Wade’s cellphone and cellphone tower transmissions to track his movements. It seems to contradict Wade’s testimony last week in which he said he had visited Willis at her condo in Hapeville no more than 10 times before he was hired in November 2021. It also indicates Wade twice arrived late at night at the condo and left early the next morning in the months before Willis and Wade said their relationship became romantic early in 2022.
Both Wade and Willis testified last week that they did not spend the night together at the Hapeville condo.
“We are required to respond to the filing via the court and we are preparing a response now,” Jeff DiSantis, a spokesman for Willis, said Friday.
The timeline is important for two reasons. If Willis and Wade were a couple before she hired him it raises the prospect that she may have violated at least the spirit of anti-nepotism rules, though Fulton’s policy specifically focuses on family members. More importantly, both Willis and Wade have testified under oath that the relationship began in 2022. If defense attorneys can prove that they lied under oath it could constitute perjury.
Friday’s court filing includes an affidavit from Charles Mittelstadt, a longtime investigator for defense attorneys. He said he obtained the cellphone data from AT&T through a subpoena.
Mittelstadt said he used the online tool, CellHawk, to determine where Wade spent his time in 2021. “CellHawk is considered by law enforcement to be the gold standard in cellphone records analytics,” Mittelstadt said, noting it is used by law enforcement throughout the U.S. and Georgia.
The affidavit says Willis and Wade called each other more than 2,000 times during the first 11 months of 2021 and exchanged just less than 10,000 text messages.
Mittelstadt also said he focused on when Wade’s cellphone connected to a tower near Willis’ Hapeville address for extended periods to make sure he was stationary and not in transit. He said he did the same thing to determine when Wade was at his home in East Cobb County.
On one occasion, on Sept. 11, 2021, Wade’s phone left the Doraville area and arrived in the vicinity of Willis’ Hapeville address at 10:45 p.m. The phone remained there until 3:28 a.m. and could later be seen arriving in East Cobb at 4:05 a.m., shortly before Wade sent a text to Willis, the affidavit said.
Similarly, Wade’s phone left the East Cobb area the night of Nov. 29, 2021, after receiving an 11:32 p.m. call from Willis, the affidavit said. It arrived in Hapeville at 12:43 a.m. and remained there until 4:55 a.m., the affidavit added.
Explore
The Fani Willis hearing: What we learned
Mittelstadt “is available to testify at the court’s convenience,” said the filing, by Trump attorneys Steve Sadow and Jennifer Little.
It will now be up to Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to decide whether to admit Mittelstadt’s affidavit and the phone records into evidence.
Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade testifies during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024 in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool/Getty Images/TNS)
Credit: TNS
Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade testifies during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024 in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool/Getty Images/TNS)
Former DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James said the cellphone data raises questions.
“People could look at this and be suspicious,” James said. “But in the court of law, you need proof. The real question is whether there was proof there was a romantic relationship at that time and I don’t think this proves there was. It just proves a relationship, which they’ve already acknowledged.”
Questioned at the Feb. 15 hearing by Sadow, Willis said Wade visited her at the Hapeville condo before she hired him in November 2021. On one occasion, Willis recalled a time when he picked up food from the Lickety Split Southern Kitchen & Bar and brought it to the condo.
As to how many times Wade paid her a visit in 2021, Willis testified, “I don’t think often, but I don’t – I don’t want to speculate.”
When pressed for a number by Sadow, Willis said, “Let’s say more than 10, but I’m not sure that that’s even accurate. He certainly has come and picked me up, gone and grabbed some food to eat. I don’t remember him being in that condo a lot.”
No one, except maybe one of her daughters on one occasion, ever spent the night with her at the Hapeville condo, Willis testified.
Earlier in that hearing, Sadow asked Wade how frequently he visited Willis’ condo before November 2021. Wade testified that it was not more than 10 times.
Sadow suggested phone records could demonstrate Wade was there more than he had let on.
“So, if phone records were to reflect that you were making phone calls from the same location as the condo before Nov. 1 of 2021, and it was on multiple occasions, the phone records would be wrong?” Sadow asked Wade.
“If phone records reflected that? Yes, sir,” Wade responded.
“They’d be wrong?” Sadow asked.
“They’d be wrong,” Wade responded.
Attorney Steve Sadow, former President Donald Trump’s lead attorney in the case, questions witness Terrence Bradley, Nathan Wade’s former business partner, during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP)
Credit: AP
Attorney Steve Sadow, former President Donald Trump’s lead attorney in the case, questions witness Terrence Bradley, Nathan Wade’s former business partner, during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP)
Wade said he could have been in the Hapeville area for any number of reasons. He said he could have been visiting the Porsche Experience Center, the airport, the Delta Air Lines headquarters or local restaurants.
Wade testified he never spent the night at Willis’ condo.
At the hearing, Willis and Wade’s testimony was contradicted by Robin Yeartie, a former colleague and friend of the DA’s who allowed Willis to sublet the Hapeville condo.
Yeartie testified during the hearing that she had “no doubt” that Willis and Wade began their romantic relationship shortly after they met in 2019. She also testified that she had seen them “hugging, kissing” and being affectionate.
Both Willis and Yeartie testified that they had a falling out in 2022, after Yeartie left the DA’s office due to poor performance, and the two have not spoken since then. Prosecutors sought to frame Yeartie as a disgruntled former employee who might have an ax to grind with Willis.
Willis owns a house in South Fulton but moved out in early 2021 due to security concerns. Her father, who lived with her for a time, testified last week that people showed up outside the house shouting curse words and racial epithets at Willis.
It got so bad police regularly showed up at the home with bomb-sniffing dogs, John Clifford Floyd III, Willis’ father, said. Willis moved out of her home and into the condo rented by Yeartie.
https://www.ajc.com/politics/breaking-cellphone-data-raise-questions-about-start-of-willis-wade-relationship/SFVMYPTD2RD3HMZYOH3377CNNE/
POLITICSDefense says cellphone data raises questions about start of Willis-Wade relationship
Thousands of texts between DA and special prosecutor in 2021, court filing says
The personal relationship between Fulton County DA Fani Willis, right, and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, left,has come under scrutiny during the Georgia election interference case. (Alyssa Pointer & John Bazemore/AP)
Credit: AP
The personal relationship between Fulton County DA Fani Willis, right, and special prosecutor Nathan Wade, left,has come under scrutiny during the Georgia election interference case. (Alyssa Pointer & John Bazemore/AP)
By Bill Rankin,
David Wickert and
Tamar Hallerman
Updated 2 hours ago
Nathan Wade appeared to make at least 35 visits to the Hapeville neighborhood where Fani Willis was living before the district attorney hired him to lead Fulton County’s election interference prosecution, according to cellphone data included in a court submission filed Friday.
The filing, by attorneys for Donald Trump, raises fresh questions about the relationship between the two prosecutors, which the former president and other defendants argue has tainted the case against them and should result in Willis and her office being disqualified.
Trump’s lawyers relied on data collected from Wade’s cellphone and cellphone tower transmissions to track his movements. It seems to contradict Wade’s testimony last week in which he said he had visited Willis at her condo in Hapeville no more than 10 times before he was hired in November 2021. It also indicates Wade twice arrived late at night at the condo and left early the next morning in the months before Willis and Wade said their relationship became romantic early in 2022.
Both Wade and Willis testified last week that they did not spend the night together at the Hapeville condo.
“We are required to respond to the filing via the court and we are preparing a response now,” Jeff DiSantis, a spokesman for Willis, said Friday.
The timeline is important for two reasons. If Willis and Wade were a couple before she hired him it raises the prospect that she may have violated at least the spirit of anti-nepotism rules, though Fulton’s policy specifically focuses on family members. More importantly, both Willis and Wade have testified under oath that the relationship began in 2022. If defense attorneys can prove that they lied under oath it could constitute perjury.
Friday’s court filing includes an affidavit from Charles Mittelstadt, a longtime investigator for defense attorneys. He said he obtained the cellphone data from AT&T through a subpoena.
Mittelstadt said he used the online tool, CellHawk, to determine where Wade spent his time in 2021. “CellHawk is considered by law enforcement to be the gold standard in cellphone records analytics,” Mittelstadt said, noting it is used by law enforcement throughout the U.S. and Georgia.
The affidavit says Willis and Wade called each other more than 2,000 times during the first 11 months of 2021 and exchanged just less than 10,000 text messages.
Mittelstadt also said he focused on when Wade’s cellphone connected to a tower near Willis’ Hapeville address for extended periods to make sure he was stationary and not in transit. He said he did the same thing to determine when Wade was at his home in East Cobb County.
On one occasion, on Sept. 11, 2021, Wade’s phone left the Doraville area and arrived in the vicinity of Willis’ Hapeville address at 10:45 p.m. The phone remained there until 3:28 a.m. and could later be seen arriving in East Cobb at 4:05 a.m., shortly before Wade sent a text to Willis, the affidavit said.
Similarly, Wade’s phone left the East Cobb area the night of Nov. 29, 2021, after receiving an 11:32 p.m. call from Willis, the affidavit said. It arrived in Hapeville at 12:43 a.m. and remained there until 4:55 a.m., the affidavit added.
Explore
The Fani Willis hearing: What we learned
Mittelstadt “is available to testify at the court’s convenience,” said the filing, by Trump attorneys Steve Sadow and Jennifer Little.
It will now be up to Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to decide whether to admit Mittelstadt’s affidavit and the phone records into evidence.
Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade testifies during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024 in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool/Getty Images/TNS)
Credit: TNS
Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade testifies during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024 in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool/Getty Images/TNS)
Former DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James said the cellphone data raises questions.
“People could look at this and be suspicious,” James said. “But in the court of law, you need proof. The real question is whether there was proof there was a romantic relationship at that time and I don’t think this proves there was. It just proves a relationship, which they’ve already acknowledged.”
Questioned at the Feb. 15 hearing by Sadow, Willis said Wade visited her at the Hapeville condo before she hired him in November 2021. On one occasion, Willis recalled a time when he picked up food from the Lickety Split Southern Kitchen & Bar and brought it to the condo.
As to how many times Wade paid her a visit in 2021, Willis testified, “I don’t think often, but I don’t – I don’t want to speculate.”
When pressed for a number by Sadow, Willis said, “Let’s say more than 10, but I’m not sure that that’s even accurate. He certainly has come and picked me up, gone and grabbed some food to eat. I don’t remember him being in that condo a lot.”
No one, except maybe one of her daughters on one occasion, ever spent the night with her at the Hapeville condo, Willis testified.
Earlier in that hearing, Sadow asked Wade how frequently he visited Willis’ condo before November 2021. Wade testified that it was not more than 10 times.
Sadow suggested phone records could demonstrate Wade was there more than he had let on.
“So, if phone records were to reflect that you were making phone calls from the same location as the condo before Nov. 1 of 2021, and it was on multiple occasions, the phone records would be wrong?” Sadow asked Wade.
“If phone records reflected that? Yes, sir,” Wade responded.
“They’d be wrong?” Sadow asked.
“They’d be wrong,” Wade responded.
Attorney Steve Sadow, former President Donald Trump’s lead attorney in the case, questions witness Terrence Bradley, Nathan Wade’s former business partner, during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP)
Credit: AP
Attorney Steve Sadow, former President Donald Trump’s lead attorney in the case, questions witness Terrence Bradley, Nathan Wade’s former business partner, during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP)
Wade said he could have been in the Hapeville area for any number of reasons. He said he could have been visiting the Porsche Experience Center, the airport, the Delta Air Lines headquarters or local restaurants.
Wade testified he never spent the night at Willis’ condo.
At the hearing, Willis and Wade’s testimony was contradicted by Robin Yeartie, a former colleague and friend of the DA’s who allowed Willis to sublet the Hapeville condo.
Yeartie testified during the hearing that she had “no doubt” that Willis and Wade began their romantic relationship shortly after they met in 2019. She also testified that she had seen them “hugging, kissing” and being affectionate.
Both Willis and Yeartie testified that they had a falling out in 2022, after Yeartie left the DA’s office due to poor performance, and the two have not spoken since then. Prosecutors sought to frame Yeartie as a disgruntled former employee who might have an ax to grind with Willis.
Willis owns a house in South Fulton but moved out in early 2021 due to security concerns. Her father, who lived with her for a time, testified last week that people showed up outside the house shouting curse words and racial epithets at Willis.
It got so bad police regularly showed up at the home with bomb-sniffing dogs, John Clifford Floyd III, Willis’ father, said. Willis moved out of her home and into the condo rented by Yeartie.