Ashleigh Merchant: The Lawyer Who Turned Fani Willis’ RICO Case Against Donald Trump on Its Head

By: Donald V. Watkins

Copyrighted and Published on February 14, 2024

IMAGE: Georgia criminal defense attorney Ashleigh B. Merchant.

An Editorial Opinion

Prior to Donald Trump’s RICO indictment in Fulton County, Georgia last year, very few Americans had heard of Ashleigh B. Merchant.  She is a criminal defense lawyer who represents Trump co-defendant Michael A. Roman in the Georgia RICO case.

Roman worked for the Trump 2020 campaign as director of election day operations.

Ashleigh Merchant and her husband John B. Merchant, III, run their two-lawyer firm in an Atlanta suburban community.

Today, everybody in America knows Ashleigh B. Merchant’s name.

On January 8, 2024, Merchant filed a 127-page motion (together with exhibits) on behalf on Roman that turned a "slam-dunk” RICO case against Donald Trump and his co-defendants on its head.  She exposed the illicit love affair between Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis and Special Prosecutor Nathan J. Wade, her married lover.

Merchant’s motion has placed the RICO case against Trump and his co-defendants in jeopardy.

On February 2, 2024, Willis and Wade filed a 176-page Response to Merchant’s motion in which she acknowledged her love affair with Wade.  However, Willis claims that this illicit love affair has no bearing on the RICO case.

On February 9, 2024, Merchant delivered another gut punch to Willis and Wade in her 122-page Reply to Willis’ formal Response.  The Reply contained new information and documents that called into question the credibility of Willis and Wade on several conflicts of interest-related matters presented in their Response.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who’s presiding over this RICO case, has set a hearing on Merchant’s motion for February 15 and 16, 2024.  Despite a request from Willis to block the subpoenas, Judge McAfee refused to quash subpoenas Merchant has issued for Willis and Wade to testify at the hearing.

Courage, Preparation, and Flawless Execution are the Keys to Winning Criminal Cases

Of the lawyers who are working within Donald Trump’s four criminal cases, Ashleigh Merchant is the only one who has demonstrated the backbone, intellectual acumen, trial skills, and capable to strike a fatal blow to Trump's RICO case.  She knows what she is doing. 

Since January 9th, Merchant has exhibited the courage, preparation, and flawless execution necessary to win Trump’s RICO case.  She is also proactive, rather than reactive. 

Merchant is actually trying to WIN the criminal case for Michael Roman, which is a rarity in today's world of criminal defense attorneys. Most criminal defense lawyers are nothing more than glorified "surrenderers" (i.e., guilty plea lawyers).

The other attorneys in Trump’s four criminal cases are running a high-price clown show.  All of them together have not been able to inflict the massive damage to prosecutors that Merchant has single-handedly inflicted since January 8th.

Merchant is effective because she is courageous, experienced in the courtroom, and talented. 

Prior to Merchant, the only criminal defense attorney who proactively used information about illicit love affairs between prosecutors, judges and bailiffs, and other courthouse personnel to torpedo criminal cases was me.  Courthouse romances are more prevalent than most people realize. I routinely exposed them to the advantage of my clients.

What is more, Merchant’s issuance of subpoenas to Willis and Wade to testify at the February 15-16 hearing on her motion was a brilliant strategy.  To my knowledge, no criminal defense attorney other than Merchant has used this "ballsy" technique since my legal team employed it to free Birmingham police officer Mike Lee from felony charges of tampering with government records in the State of Alabama v. Mike Lee (1990).

Our legal team in Mike Lee's case agreed that lead defense attorney Lewis Gillis would call Jefferson County District Attorney David Barber as an adverse witness for Lee's defense.  Once Barber took the witness stand, Gillis filleted him in front of stunned jurors. They were surprised to see the way Gillis surgically carved up the lead prosecutor in Lee's case.

Gillis exposed Barber's political motivation for bringing the criminal charges against Mike Lee.  Gillis also kept Barber on a short leash while slicing him with razor-sharp questions about all his pre- and post-indictment comments.  Barber was nervous, unprepared, and testy during his entire time on the witness stand.  

Gillis’ questioning of Barber was masterful.  This move produced a shocking acquittal on all charges. Lee’s three co-defendants were convicted in separate trials that were held before and after his trial.

Ashleigh Merchant is implementing the same kind of proactive defense we used in Mike Lee’s case.  She knows that no prosecutor can withstand razor-sharp questioning by a highly skilled criminal defense lawyer who has courage, who is prepared, and who will flawlessly execute his/her game-plan.

If Judge McAfee forces Willis and Wade to take the witness stand, Merchant has the documents and information she needs to undermine their credibility. Typically, a highly skilled defense lawyer has far more ammunition than he/she reveals in public.

The Joy of Being a Spectator to a Gladiator Fight in the Legal Arena

As a retired litigator who has freed many criminal defendants from so-called “slam-dunk” criminal prosecutions, I am enjoying the gladiator contest between Ashleigh B. Merchant and Fani T. Willis. This is a criminal court version of the Super Bowl.

These two women are throwing heavy-weight punches at each other in the gladiator pit. However, Merchant has successfully shifted the momentum in this RICO case in her Michael Roman's favor. 

The advantage Merchant has over Willis is her keen instincts as a trial lawyer.  She is waging an aggressive, multidimensional fight against Willis. Merchant is also picking up everything moving on the radar screen during her litigation battles.

Merchant is also a student of body language.  She picked up on the romantic vibe between Willis and Wade in one of their early encounters in the case.  This is why she investigated this illicit love affair and was able to document it. 

Now, Merchant is using her sophisticated litigation skills to parlay an exposed illicit love affair between the top two prosecutors in Michael Roman's case into a pathway to freedom for him.

Ashleigh B. Merchant is engaged in some "real lawyering" for her client.  We'll see if she can deliver freedom to Michael Roman in this RICO case.