Jim Jordan subpoenas Fulton DA Fani Willis over federal grant misuse allegations
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) has subpoenaed Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over allegations that she misused federal funds.
In the subpoena and cover letter, both obtained by FOX 5, Jordan claims that the District Attorney's Office has "failed to comply voluntarily" with the committee's requests for documents connected to the office's receipt and use of U.S. Department of Justice grants.
The subpoena comes a few weeks after Jordan announced an investigation into whether Willis misused funds in the hiring and payment of Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor working on the county's election investigation into former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants.
In the previous letter, Wade is accused of receiving a substantial amount of money from Fulton County, which he reportedly spent "extravagantly on lavish vacations" with Willis.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) speaks during an on-camera interview near the House Chambers during a series of votes in the U.S. Capitol Building on January 09, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Jordan told FOX 5 that he had concerns that prosecutors comingled funds while investigating Trump and the other defendants.
"You’re using federal funds to do this," he said. "They get $14.6 million in grant money."
SEE THE FULL LETTER TO DA FANI WILLIS
Jordan cites in the new letter to Willis a report from the Washington Free Beacon alleging that Willis fired an employee who tried to stop the Fulton County District Attorney's Office from using a federal grant for the creation of a Center of Youth Empowerment and Gang Prevention for travel, computers and "swag."
"The whistleblower was in charge of ‘vetting, selecting, and securing [the FCDAO’s] grant partnerships’ and was ‘the only contact’ DOJ had with FCDA. Less than two months after receiving this warning, you "abruptly terminated [the whistleblower] and had her escorted out of her office by seven armed investigators," Jordan wrote.
Willis has been asked to appear before the Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C. on the morning of Feb. 23 - a little more than a week after she is scheduled to appear before a Fulton County judge for a hearing on allegations she had an improper romantic relationship with Wade.
Rep. Jim Jordan probes Fulton County special prosecutor
U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan sent this letter to Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade on Friday. Jordan says the committee is investigating Wade's actions in connection with prosecuting the Georgia election interference case.
Fani Willis responds to House Judicial Committee subpoena
In a statement to FOX 5, a spokesperson for the Fulton County District Attorney called Jordan's claims "false allegations."
The spokesperson said the ex-employee was a "holdover employee from the previous administration who was terminated for cause" and that any lawsuits over the firing were "baseless litigation."
"Any examination of the records of our grant programs will find that they are highly effective and conducted in cooperation with the Department of Justice and in compliance with all Department of Justice requirements. Our federal grant programs are focused on helping at-risk youth and seeking justice for sexual assault victims who were too long ignored," the statement reads. "Our federal grant-funded Sexual Assault Kit Initiative has been cited by the United States Attorney General as a model program. We are proud of our grant programs and our partnership with the Department of Justice that makes Fulton County a safer, more just place."
Jordan's previous attempts to investigate Fani Willis
This is not the first time that Rep. Jordan has attempted to investigate Willis in connection to the indictment of former President Donald Trump and 18 others for allegedly interfering in the Georgia presidential election in 2020.
Almost immediately after the indictment was handed up, Jordan accused Willis of conspiring with the Justice Department.
In September, Willis sent a letter to Jordan accusing him of interfering in the state case and pushing "outrageous partisan misrepresentations."
Less than a month later, Willis responded to a demand from Jordan by sending a letter that accused him of abusing his authority as Chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary.
"A charitable explanation of your correspondence is that you are ignorant of the United States and Georgia Constitutions and codes. A more troubling explanation is that you are abusing your authority as Chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary to attempt to obstruct and interfere with a Georgia criminal prosecution."
District Attorney Fani Willis holds a press conference in the Fulton County Government Center after a grand jury voted to indict former US President Donald Trump and 18 others on August 14, 2023. (Photo by CHRISTIAN MONTERROSA/AFP via Getty Images)
The investigation by the House Judiciary Committee appears to be based on a letter that Willis
A Fulton County grand jury indicted former President Trump and 18 others in August. Since then, 4 of the defendants in the case have accepted plea deals.