Georgia prosecutor in Trump case says threats ‘a waste of time’

Fulton County, Ga., District Attorney Fani Willis denounced Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) over a recent letter demanding documents on her criminal indictment of former President Trump, which she interpreted as a threat.

“In this job, and as a woman in general standing in this position, to threaten me is a waste of time,” Willis said at the Revolt World Festival in Atlanta on Sunday.

Willis’s official response to Jordan’s letter questioned his understanding of the law, deriding his “attempt to interfere with and obstruct this office’s prosecution,” and said her response wasn’t even needed because “settled constitutional law clearly permits me to ignore your unjustified and illegal intrusion.”

“It’s not going to get anyone results and I don’t care if it’s a member of Congress, I don’t care if it’s a local someone in the community, one thing that people learn about me is that I’m an equal opportunity prosecutor,” Willis said Sunday. “So, if you come into this community and you violate the law, you’re going to be held accountable.”

The prosecutor has frequently shaken off questions about her ethics and capability to equitably prosecute, as well as threats to her life and her family. She said she and her mother were doxxed and harassed by people online after the Trump indictment.

Willis said the job is bigger than just going after a prosecution, but also about stepping up for her community.

“What they don’t do is sit in my seat. I am the one there with the crying mama, which usually looks like me, and they’re telling me stories like ‘My baby was going to graduate so we buried him in his cap and gown,” she said. “It is not until you’ve had that kind of burden on your shoulders that you understand why it’s so important, that people have value.”

The trial for two of the 19 defendants charged in the sprawling racketeering case over election fraud claims starts next month. The other 17 defendants, including Trump, will face trial in Georgia early next year pending attempts by some defendants to get their case moved to federal court.