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Prosecutor in Trump’s Georgia case reaches temporary divorce agreement and avoids testifying about Fani Willis

Trump and a co-defendant have cited allegations of a romantic relationship between the prosecutor and Willis in their efforts to get the election charges dismissed.
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Fulton County District Attorney Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta in October.Alyssa Pointer / Pool via AP file

ATLANTA — The lead prosecutor in the election interference case against former President Donald Trump in Georgia reached a temporary agreement with his wife in their divorce proceedings Tuesday, canceling a court hearing Wednesday where he had been expected to testify about an alleged improper relationship with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

Cobb County Superior Court Judge Henry Thompson said in a court filing that special prosecutor Nathan Wade and his wife, Jocelyn Wade, agreed there was no longer a need for a hearing Wednesday, when Nathan Wade was likely to testify about allegations of a romantic relationship with Willis.

Trump and a co-defendant in the election interference case have cited the allegations of a romantic relationship in their efforts to get the charges against them dismissed.

“The parties, by and through their counsel of record, have entered into a temporary agreement addressing all issues presently before the Court,” Thompson wrote in a court filing Tuesday.

The details of the agreement were not immediately clear, and Thompson noted that the parties "have further agreed that the terms and provisions of this temporary agreement shall not be filed with the Court.”

An attorney for Joycelyn Wade said in a statement Tuesday that the agreement resolves issues of temporary alimony and attorney's fees that were set to be heard in court on Wednesday.

"While this negates the immediate need for a hearing, it does not settle the case," said Andrea Dyer Hastings, noting that her legal team was still obtaining information from Nathan Wade to divide the couple's assets after over 26 years of marriage.

"Our aim is to guide our client towards a just and equitable divorce resolution — without political agenda or public scrutiny. We are not connected to, nor concerned with, any other case," she added.

Michael Roman, one of Trump's co-defendants, first accused Wade and Willis of having an improper relationship.

A court filing in Wade's divorce proceedings this month included credit card statements showed that he had purchased plane tickets for Willis for trips together.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who is presiding over the election interference case, has set a Feb. 15 date for a hearing on the allegations and Roman's motion that Willis and Wade should be disqualified from prosecuting the case. Willis is also expected to respond to the allegations for the first time this week.

An attorney for Roman who previously said she had asked the Cobb County judge to unseal the Wades' divorce records did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night.

Charlie Gile reported from Atlanta and Zoë Richards from New York.