(ProsperNews.net) – Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has been ordered by a Georgia judge to release all communications between her office, Special Counsel Jack Smith, and the U.S. House January 6 Committee. The directive, issued by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, follows a lawsuit filed by Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, alleging that Willis violated Georgia’s Open Records Act by failing to respond to a records request filed in August 2023.
The lawsuit, initiated in March 2024, claimed Willis’s office ignored Judicial Watch’s request for records, prompting the group to seek judicial intervention. Judge McBurney ruled Willis in default for not responding to the lawsuit, ordering her to produce the requested records within five business days. The court also agreed to consider Judicial Watch’s request for attorney’s fees related to the case.
The decision arrives amidst Willis’s ongoing prosecution of President-elect Donald Trump over alleged election interference in Georgia during the 2020 election. Judicial Watch’s records request aimed to investigate potential coordination between Willis’s office, federal entities, and the January 6 Committee. Critics argue that such collaboration could raise questions about the transparency and independence of her investigation.
“This ruling is a game-changer,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “In over three decades of work, this is the first time we’ve seen a government official held in default for failing to respond to an open records lawsuit.”
The order to disclose communications has intensified scrutiny on Willis, particularly regarding her handling of the Trump prosecution. The release of these documents could reveal the extent of any coordination between her office, Jack Smith, and the January 6 Committee, potentially influencing public perceptions of the case’s impartiality.
As Willis faces increasing challenges in prosecuting Trump, the upcoming disclosure of these communications may shed light on the broader context of the investigation. Observers are closely watching the case for its potential implications on the intersection of local and federal legal proceedings against Trump.
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