ATLANTA — Former President Donald Trump says Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ motion to have the Georgia Court of Appeals dismiss the appeal that seeks to disqualify her from the election interference case, is nothing more than a Hail Mary.

Trump filed his response to that motion on Thursday calling it a “desperate bid to avoid disqualification of a deeply conflicted District Attorney who has engaged in – and continues to unapologetically engage in – extrajudicial forensic misconduct.”

Earlier this month, Willis asked for the appeal to be dismissed due to a “lack of sufficient evidence.”

“The State’s motion is, at bottom, a red herring. The State devotes its entire motion to the standard of review of the trial court’s factual findings when all – or substantially all – of the issues raised in this appeal are legal issues,” the filing said.

The case against Trump and several of his associates who have been indicted here in Georgia over alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election is currently on hold as the Court of Appeals decides whether or not Willis should be removed from the case.

Trump and other co-defendants filed a motion to remove Willis from the case over her relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade.

Willis and Wade acknowledged the relationship, which they said ended last summer, but they have argued it does not create any sort of conflict and has no bearing on the case.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis would be allowed to stay on the case if Wade stepped aside. Wade resigned the same day as the ruling.

Trump and his attorneys later submitted an appeal arguing the indictment should have been dismissed, and that Willis and her team should have been disqualified from the case.

In a statement to Channel 2 Action News, Trump’s Georgia attorney, Steve Sadow, said:

“Trump has filed his response in opposition to the State’s meritless motion to dismiss the interlocutory appeal. The Georgia Court of Appeals granted us the right to appeal after due and proper consideration. The State’s “Hail Mary” motion is an obvious attempt to stop appellate review of DA Willis’ misconduct. We are optimistic that the Court will deny the motion and proceed to favorably decide the appeal on the merits.”

—  Steve Sadow

Channel 2 Action News contacted Willis’ office for a comment on this story but they declined.