Yesterday, Costello behaved so atrociously on the witness stand that Juan Merchan cleared the courtroom to admonish him & the defense attorneys. Costello is due back on the stand
And there it is, #Merchan signifies he’s losing patience w/ Bove as he continues to argue a decided issue. Bove insists it’s important, & generously Merchan gives him another chance to speak. But now Merchan repeats his previous decisions on the issue above is harping on, namely that #MichaelCohen was #Trump’s atty when the charged conduct took place.
#FaniWillis walked unaccompanied through the front door of a #FultonCounty courtroom on Thurs afternoon in a bright magenta dress & announced she was ready to testify. She was interrupting her lawyer, who at that very moment was trying to convince a judge that she should not have to testify at all.
A number of lawyers have referred to “Rule 1.6” during the hearing. That's a citation from #bar association rules that relates to lawyers keeping info received from clients #confidential. But Judge Scott #McAfee said this morning that he would direct witnesses to “be responsive to any questioning that may be covered by Rule 1.6” because it was not equal to #AttorneyClientPrivilege.
#FaniWillis hired #NathanWade in Nov 2021, & the 2 have said their personal relationship began months later. But #Trump co-defendant Roman’s lawyer says Bradley has “personal knowledge” that the relationship began before Willis was sworn in as DA in 2021.
Willis told the court that Bradley does not have info relevant to the case. She has also argued that any info he might have would be protected by #AttorneyClientPrivilege from his work as Wade’s divorce atty, & therefore would be inadmissible.
Judge McAfee says “1.6 is not going to bar his testimony in this case,” but the narrower restriction of #AttorneyClientPrivilege will. So defense attorneys questioning him about Wade's relationship w/ #FaniWillis have to work within that gap.
Ashleigh Merchant is trying to pierce Bradley’s attorney-client privilege w/ #NathanWade by bringing up a #legal concept the #CrimeFraud exception.
NOT APPLICABLE having a relationship IS NOT A CRIME
The revelation, which came near the end of a 2-day evidentiary hearing on misconduct claims against #FaniWillis, led Judge #McAfee to abruptly end Bradley’s testimony. McAfee said he would meet w/Bradley & his atty in a private hearing to consider whether Wade’s #AttorneyClientPrivilege claim w/Bradley had been pierced & whether Bradley could be forced to answer questions about Willis & #NathanWade.