Lawyer says DA Fani Willis' budget to prosecute backlogs of homicide cases was used in Trump investi

so you've gone back and reviewed all of the Fulton County commission's minutes and Records to see what requests were made and if there was a resolution granting the additional funding yes oh yes was there ever a request for additional funding for a special prosecutor to pursue these election cases no there wasn't and I knew that before um we got the District Attorney's response but subsequently we got a response from the district attorney's office that said we didn't do it we don't have to do it

I'm a con officer um so their argument was we don't have to comply with those statutes or those rules because she's saying um she's a constitutional officer so she doesn't have to get County approval she can spend her budget however she wants then why would she have gotten County approval for the uh the other 55 attorneys so what I've surmised is that was because those were staff members and so she she C she went and asked for additional budgetary money she needed a higher budget so for those 5

5 people she went and asked for more money cuz she didn't have enough money and and once she was awarded that it's her position now that she can spend that money however she wants doesn't have to use it for 55 new staff she can use it for special attorney general yes not attorney general special essentially that that that is their argument in their reply briefs that they filed um in court that they have inherent Authority they don't have to comply with the county ordinances don't have to comply

with the statute um so they don't have to comply with our state statute that they have once they're awarded the budget they can use that budget however I mean how they're how they're motion and I and I'm happy to send the motion um it's public record but how their motion argued it was if they get $5 million they can pay that to one person if they want um as long as the you know because the voters authorized her to do that so the county their position is the county authorizes a budget and she can

pretty much has inherent authority to do it however even though she specifically asked for the money to prosecute backlogged homicide cases in Atlanta yes okay um what's your opinion on that you think the statute or County procedures permit that no I do not um and there's and I cited several different County um County ordinances so when I read the statute when I read 15-1 1820 and it makes sense you know it makes sense intuitively as lawyers when we Bill someone is reviewing our bills I mean th

at that that's just you know that's the process if you're in private practice you know your client authorizes your bills if you're in if you're doing Public Defense which I've done Public Defense I've done appointed work um you know the the governing agency approves my bills and they will cut them they will regularly cut them um if they're too high and so there's always some type of budgetary authority that's that's reviewing everything um so I thought it was very strange that in this case there

isn't one um and that there's really no oversight because it is public money so I know that I know that it's an elected official but it's still public money um and I don't live in fton County so it would probably aggravate me more if I did so we have have the code section up that you're referencing for prosecuting attorneys getting additional Personnel that's what Mr Wade would qualify as correct yes so under B um that is the that's the section that authorizes the appointment of special counsel

and it says the manner and amount of compensation to be paid is fixed by either local act or by the district attorney with the approval of the county um and so that's where that that's our argument that that this was not appropriate expenditure because it did not have County approval so our state law requires if a DA is going to go seek outside Council I'm going to call them that must be approved by the County Commission yes without a doubt