Trump prosecutor rebukes claim of improper relationship with lawyer
Watch a live stream of the court hearing by pressing the play button at the top of this page.
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Watch a live stream of the court hearing by pressing the play button at the top of this page.
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The trips Willis says she and Wade made together
Fani Willis has been listing the trips she made with Nathan Wade:
'I'm not on trial', says Willis
Merchant - the lawyer for Trump's co-defendant - just started to ask Willis why her office objected to the legal team accessing her Delta travel records.
Willis says she objected because Merchant has been "intrusive".
"You're confused. You think I'm on trial. These people are on trial for trying to steal an election in 2020," she says, referring to the main case.
"I'm not on trial, no matter how hard you try to put me on trial."
Watch moment Willis unexpectedly takes the stand
For most of today, we weren't sure whether Willis was going to testify, as her team had initially resisted. But in a quick twist this afternoon, her legal team withdrew their request.
As a law professor who's in the courtroom described to us, Willis "barrelled her way in" and stood by her team, saying "I'm ready to go."
You can watch the moment below:
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I never handed Wade more than $2,500 - Willis
Willis reiterates that she keeps money in her house and she often reimbursed Wade in cash for payments he made for trips.
But she says she never handed Wade more than $2,500 in cash, which was "when we went to Belize".
She adds that she gave him $2,000 on a separate trip to Aruba.
"When I travel I always take cash," she adds.
Willis says she paid Wade back with money earned through 'sweat and tears'
We're going over Willis' finances now.
This is important to Michael Roman's legal team (who is Trump's co-defendant and bringing the complaint against Willis) because he alleges Willis benefited financially from her relationship with Wade, whom she hired. Roman claimed Wade paid for their travel expenses.
Willis vehemently objects to this. She says she reimbursed Wade in cash that she "kept in her house".
The money came from her "sweat and tears", she says.
She says growing up her father always advised her to keep cash on hand for an emergency.
"I would advise it to all women," Willis says.
'I gave him the money back', says Willis
Lawyer Ashleigh Merchant - representing Trump's co-defendant, who brought the case - is quizzing Willis about several of the vacations they took together, including a cruise she took with him and his mother in October 2022.
Willis says Wade booked it because he has several travel agents as a "world traveller".
But she says she would have reimbursed him.
"Just because he booked it - I don't consider him having taken me anyplace," she says.
"Whatever he told me it was, I gave him the money back."
The lawyers who are bringing this case against Willis are seeking to show that she and Wade financially benefited from the relationship.
You can watch the hearing too by pressing play at the top of this page.
Willis says they started dating in early 2022
Ashleigh Merchant - who is the lawyer for Trump's co-defendant who brought the complaint against Willis - is asking her when exactly her relationship with Wade began.
She gives a similar answer to Wade - early 2022, which is after Wade was hired.
She says she doesn't recall the specific day because "it's not like when you're in grade school when you send a little letter and it says 'will you be my girlfriend?'".
Willis being asked about trips she took with Wade
Willis is asked about the first vacation she went on with Nathan Wade.
She replies that it was in April 2022, but describes vacation as "a stretch".
She says they went to Tennessee for no more than a day, to mark his birthday, and they may have spent the night.
Watch: I ran to the courtroom to share testimony
Fani Willis began her testimony this afternoon by saying she was "very anxious" to get in court and defend herself. Watch what she said here:
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Willis says she had to move because of threats to safety
Willis is explaining why she had to leave a home she shared with her father to live with her former friend, Robin Bryant Yeartie, who testified earlier.
She says she was getting threats because of her "stance on gangs" - a reference to high-profile cases she has prosecuted during her time at the district attorney's office.
"My dad was begging me to leave the house" for her safety, Willis says.
Yeartie gave testimony earlier claiming that her relationship with Wade started well before Willis suggested, but Yeartie backed up claims that Willis lived there without Yeartie and Wade.
'She betrayed our friendship' says Willis on earlier witness
Fani Willis tells the court: "I very much want to be here."
She says that Robin Bryant Yeartie - who testified earlier - was an acquaintance during her college days but they lost contact until a chance encounter in Atlanta eight to 10 years ago.
"I've known her for 30 something years," she says, rebuking a question about whether they were friends.
"I certainly do not consider her a friend now," Willis says. "She betrayed our friendship."
Earlier, Bryant-Yeartie told the court the relationship began in 2019. Willis has said her and Wade's relationship started only after she hired him in late 2021.
Attorney accuses Willis of being 'hostile'
Tensions in the courtroom are high.
An attorney for one of Trump's co-defendants, Ashleigh Merchant, has accused Willis of being "hostile".
Willis says she is not a "hostile" witness.
Merchant appears to be getting frustrated with Willis for giving lengthy explanations.
Willis accuses Merchant of telling "one of her lies" about her relationship with Wade.
Willis: It's 'offensive' to say I slept with Wade at first meeting
Willis describes meeting Nathan Wade in 2019.
Her voice shaky, she says: "It's offensive to suggest you slept with someone the first day you met them and I take exception to it."
“Is there something you didn’t understand?” Willis responds icily to Ashleigh Merchant, as she queries her.
Willis says she has 'choice words' about allegations
Taking the stand, Willis appears to be visibly frustrated.
She tells Ashleigh Merchant - an attorney for Trump co-defendant Michael Roman who brought the complaint against Willis - that she had some "choice words" about the allegations her client raised.
"Wade is a southern gentleman - me not so much", she says.
BreakingFani Willis is sworn in
Willis has just been sworn in.
She says she knew to come to the courtroom when she heard Wade was done.
"I've been very anxious to have this conversation with you today, so I ran to the courtroom."
"I've been in my office pacing," she says.
This testimony from Willis will make or break entire case - legal expert
Madeline Halpert
US reporter
Willis' testimony will have a huge effect on the case, Anthony Michael Kreis, a professor with the Georgia State University College of Law says.
He's in the courtroom and says Willis "barrelled her way in" and stood by her team, saying "I'm ready to go."
The move is "a stunning turn of events that will make or break the entire case behind the motion", Kreis says.
"We often say courtrooms aren't like 'Law & Order', but that was as close to the stuff of fiction as you'll ever get."
Willis asks for documents before testimony
We're taking a five-minute break before Willis begins her highly anticipated testimony.
Wearing a bright pink dress and looking forward with a straight face, Ms Willis asks for documents to review while she is questioned.
They're taking a five-minute break to copy them.
BreakingWillis is testifying
Fani Willis has just taken the stand.
Her lawyers just said they were withdrawing their motion to quash the subpoena to testify.
Arguments begin about whether Willis will take the stand
Attorneys from opposing teams are battling it out over whether Willis should testify.
Anna Cross, a lawyer for the district attorney, says there is no "compelling" reason, and that Wade has been consistent in his testimony.
A lawyer for Michael Roman - Trump's co-defendant who brought the complaint against Willis - identifies several questions he still wants answers on, including when the relationship began.
Another lawyer for a Trump co-defendant says he wants to know about the cash she used to reimburse Wade.
"We're talking about two people who went to extraordinary lengths to hide the nature of their relationship," the lawyer says. "The district attorney needs to take the stand."
Wade's tax returns pored over
We've got a bit more from Wade's testimony just now.
Trump co-accused Michael Roman's lawyer, Ashleigh Merchant, sought to undermine Wade’s claim that he had been paid "significantly" less as Fulton County prosecutor than in private practice.
She pored over his business tax return for his law firm. She said in 2019 it recorded a payment of $184,000; in 2020, $230,000; in 2021, $236,000; in 2022, $262,000.
Merchant said in filings for 2022 and 2024, Wade said he had only $5,000 in cash.
Since being hired as a special prosecutor by Willis, Wade has made at least $653,880 from the district attorney’s office.