Newsweek: Fani Willis’ Case Against Donald Trump at Risk of Being ‘Blown Apart’

Newsweek journalist Ewan Palmer reported that the length of Fulton County Fani Willis' election interference trial in Georgia may effect other trials involving Donald Trump, according to a legal expert. On Wednesday, Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee will oversee a hearing on whether former Trump lawyers Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell can have their cases tried independently. 

Willis intends to try all 19 defendants charged under her anti-racketeering investigation into alleged criminal attempts to overturn the 2020 election together, and has suggested her office is prepared to begin proceedings as soon as October 23, 2023.

Former Deputy Assistant Attorney General Harry Litman suggested in a series of posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, that Fulton County Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis' office will have a problem estimating how long it will take to present the state's joint trial case of all 19 RICO trial defendants, as well as the number of witnesses and the size of the evidence likely to be introduced.

"If Willis comes in with an estimate along the lines of previous trials—8 months or more—it will blow to smithereens the scheduling of the various trials," Litman wrote. "And hard to see how she can provide a 'good-faith' estimate that's way lower than the previous teacher RICO.

"Recall that the best precedent—RICO for teachers—took some 8 months to try (and months before to pick a jury). If she gives a similar estimate, everything gets blown apart; if she doesn't, questions will be why this one [is] so much shorter," Litman added.

"Seems to me McAfee has to finesse this and not clear exactly how he will. Big hearing."