The judge in the Trump trial in Georgia allows the prosecutor to remain, under conditions

Judge in Georgia trial of Donald Trump for illegal attempts to overturn presidential election results American of 2020 rejected Friday the request for withdrawal from the prosecutor but posedé conditions à its maintenance.

This decision removes a major obstacle to the holding of the trial of the ex-president and his 14 co-defendants, for which no date has yet been set. Targeted by four separate criminal proceedings, the Republican candidate for the November election is seeking through his multiple appeals to go to trial as late as possible, in any case after the election.

Judge Scott McAfee concluded that there was insufficient evidence of a “conflict of interest” related to prosecutor Fani Willis' intimate relationship with an investigator she hired in the case.

Prosecutor Fani Willis testifies during a hearing in the State of Georgia v. Donald Trump case at the Fulton County Courthouse on February 15, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia © POOL – Alyssa POINTER

But, concluding that there was “an appearance of inappropriate behavior” and denouncing an “enormous lack of judgment” on the part of the prosecutor, he demanded that she withdraw from the case, with her entire team, or that this investigator, Nathan Wade, withdraws.

“We will use all available legal options while continuing to fight to put an end to this procedure”, reacted in a press release l Donald Trump's lawyer in Georgia, Steve Sadow.

A withdrawal from Fani Willis would have considerably postponed the holding of this trial. In November, the prosecutor proposed that it open on August 5 and demanded that the 15 remaining defendants be tried together.

The judge did not rule on a possible timetable, but had indicated that he would favor two separate trials if there were still as many defendants remaining.

Donald Trump's legal woes © AFP – Olivia BUGAULT, Sophie RAMIS

Four of the 19 people initially targeted by the indictment issued on August 14, notably under a law in Georgia (southeast) on organized gang crime, have already pleaded guilty .

They were sentenced to reduced sentences, without prison time, in exchange for their testimony at the future trial of the other defendants.

Among Mr. Trump's co-defendants are his former personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, and his latest White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows.

– Supreme Court decision expected –

Judge McAfee's decision comes the day after an announcement from the prosecution in another criminal trial of Donald Trump, in New York State, which could lead to a postponement.

Manahttan District Attorney Alvin Bragg during a press conference on April 4, 2023 in New York © AFP – ANGELA WEISS

The Manhattan prosecutor's office said it was open to a 30-day postponement of its trial scheduled for March 25 in New York in a case of hidden payments to an adult film actress during the campaign 2016 election.

The Republican candidate, opposed to Democratic outgoing President Joe Biden, has already managed to postpone his federal trial in Washington, initially scheduled for March 4, for attempting to illegally overturn the results of the 2020 election, claiming criminal immunity as ex-president.

The Supreme Court of the United States agreed to take up the question and set the debates for April 25, before a decision expected in June, or even July, the procedure being suspended until then.

In addition, Donald Trump's trial for his alleged casual handling of classified documents, scheduled to begin on May 20, is also expected to be postponed for several months.

Former President Donald Trump arrives at Manhattan court on February 15, 2024 in New York © AFP – ANGELA WEISS

He is being prosecuted in this case for having compromised national security by keeping classified documents classified confidential in his private residence in Florida (southeast) after his departure from the White House in January 2021, including plans military or information on nuclear weapons.

If he were elected again, he could, once inaugurated in January 2025, order a halt to federal prosecutions to against him.

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