A legal expert has cautioned Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis that pursuing an appeal to transfer a case to federal court might lead her into a potential “trap.” This warning comes in response to former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ initial unsuccessful attempt to have Willis’ charges dismissed in federal court.
Meadows subsequently filed an appeal with the 11th Circuit Court, which has now requested a brief from Willis to address the eligibility of federal officials, including Meadows, for such immunity. Law professor Anthony Michael Kreis from Georgia State University suggests that even if Willis succeeds in this review, it may ultimately prove to be short-lived and without significance.
“I think this is a trap that Fani Willis should not walk into,” Kreis wrote on the X platform. “The consensus has generally been (and I think correct) that the current status of the defendant does not matter but what does matter is whether the acts that undergird the legal action are related to official duties.”
“Willis should shut this down despite it maybe giving Meadows a defeat,” continued Kreis. “First, it is a nasty kind of textualism that conservatives like and liberals should reject. Second, it introduces more unnecessary confusion and opens the door to a greater likelihood of Supreme Court review. Third, it makes little theoretical sense. If the idea of removal is to provide a neutral venue to persons employed by the gov’t or empowered by federal law from vindictive actions in state court, then the D’s current status is irrelevant. It’s about protecting federal integrity.”
Concluded Kreis: “Willis should politely decline the invitation to derail litigation and upend the removal statute.”
Former President Donald Trump is reportedly considering seeking removal of his case to federal court. Legal analysts believe he may have a good chance of doing so. Trump and 18 others face charges related to an alleged conspiracy to overturn Georgia’s election results. His legal team is expected to attempt moving the case from state court to federal court, where they could argue for dismissal based on Trump’s immunity due to acting in an official capacity.
CNN legal analyst Elie Honig has cautioned that a significant issue with the indictment is the potential for Trump and his associates to request a change of venue, moving the trial out of Georgia’s predominantly liberal county. This strategy resembles former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ unsuccessful attempt to do so recently.
“The other big issue – and we just said this word – is removal. Get ready for a lot of talk about removal. Mark Meadows is already trying to do this. Donald Trump will try to follow. In a nutshell, what this means is, if a federal official gets charged with a state crime that relates to that federal official’s official job duties, you can get the case removed.”
Honig argued that such duties must be “within the legitimate scope of those jobs,” adding that is “an important qualification. He [Trump and others] can get the case moved over to federal court and then potentially dismissed. So, these are really important motions. Mark Meadows has already done this, Trump is sure to follow.”
“The hard part [is] it’s a lot of work. You’re not going to be able to try all 19 at once. That’s not going to happen. And you just never know how every one of these defendants, let’s put aside Trump. Every one of these defendants, even the people we heard of, is going to mount a furious defense, as is their right to do,” Honig said.
“They all work together as one cohesive entity towards an illegal end,” Honig said. “You have the advantage to pick off some low-hanging fruit and get them to flip.”
