Nathan Wade is resisting attempts by defense counsel to label his personal relationship with the DA Fani Willis as an affair.
Wade is still in the process of divorcing his estranged wife, Joycelyn, with whom he has a temporary settlement. He has said repeatedly during today’s hearing that his marriage ended in 2015. He said the marriage was “irretrievably broken” after Joycelyn had an affair -- something she has denied.
Craig Gillen, an attorney for defendant David Shafer, asked Wade if he had had “sexual relations” with Willis by May 30, 2023. After some reluctance, Wade said that he had.
Gillen pressed the point as Wade asserted in a May 2023 divorce filing that he hadn’t cheated on his wife.
Wade reiterated Thursday that he did not have an affair during the course of their marriage. He maintains that his personal relationship with Willis began in 2022, when he was “free to have a relationship.”
While questioned by Ashleigh Merchant, an attorney for defendant Michael Roman, Wade said that he had never discussed his personal relationship with Willis in social settings.
“Ms. Willis, as am I, we’re private people,” he said. “Our relationship wasn’t a secret, it was just private.”
