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3 judges recuse themselves from Fani Willis' effort to block subpoenas related to 2020 election interference case, Nathan Wade relationship

The subpoenas seek Willis' testimony at a Friday Georgia State Senate committee hearing.

ATLANTA — Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is running out of time to block two subpoenas that could require her to produce documents and testify before a Georgia State Senate committee hearing on Friday.

The subpoenas, issued by the State Senate Special Committee on Investigations, requested Willis' testimony and documents related to her ongoing 2020 election interference case and her relationship with former special prosecutor Nathan Wade, according to copies of the subpoenas included in court filings reviewed by 11Alive.

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Willis, represented by former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes, submitted a filing in Fulton County Superior Court on Sept. 4 asking the court to issue an injunction blocking the subpoenas.

"The subpoenas' broad demands to produce documents are profoundly harmful to the Prosecution," Willis' filing stated.

Willis' petition attacked the viability of the subpoenas on legal grounds and concluded by asking the court to, among other things, "issue a permanent injunction prohibiting the Committee members from pursuing or enforcing the subpoenas."

But that effort has struggled to find a judge willing to hear it.

By Monday afternoon, three Fulton County Superior Court judges had recused themselves from the matter.

Judges Craig Schwall, Sr. and Melynee Leftridge, in separate orders last week, both cited unspecified conflicts of interest that led to their decisions to recuse themselves.

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On Monday, Judge Scott McAfee joined the list of recused judges but specified his conflict. McAfee is currently presiding over the 2020 election interference case against former President Trump and other co-defendants. The State Senate committee's subpoenas seek information related to that case.

Given the overlap, McAfee wrote that he concluded his "impartiality might reasonably be questioned" and decided to recuse himself.

"The Clerk of Court is ordered to randomly assign this matter to another judge," McAfee wrote in his 9/9 order. 

As of Tuesday evening, it was unclear whether a new judge would have time to take up the case and issue a ruling before Friday morning's state senate hearing.

It was also unclear whether Willis would comply with the subpoenas if a judge did not issue an injunction before the Friday hearing. 

The Fulton County D.A.'s Office has not responded to a request for comment.

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