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WIKI

Fani Willis was born in Inglewood, California. Her father was a member of the Black Panthers and a criminal defense attorney.[5]

Willis studied political science at Howard University, graduating cum laude in 1993 and later attended Emory University School of Law, graduating in 1996 with a Juris Doctor.[4] She spent 16 years as a prosecutor in the Fulton County district attorney’s office. Her most prominent case was her prosecution of the Atlanta Public Schools cheating scandal. In 2018, she went into private practice.[6] That year, she ran for a seat on the Fulton County Superior Court, and lost.[7] In 2019, Willis became chief municipal judge for South Fulton, Georgia.[5]

District attorney of Fulton County
In 2020, Willis was elected district attorney for Fulton County, defeating Paul Howard Jr., a six-term incumbent and her former boss.[8][9]

2020 election influence investigation
Main article: 2020 Georgia election investigation
On February 10, 2021, Willis launched a criminal investigation into Donald Trump’s attempts to influence Georgia election officials—including the governor, the attorney general, and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger via a telephone call—to “find” enough votes to override Joe Biden’s win in that state and thus undo Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.[10][11][12]

In January 2022, she requested a special grand jury to consider charges of election interference by Trump and his allies.[13][14] In May, a 26-member special grand jury was given investigative authority and subpoena power and tasked with submitting a report to the judge and Willis on whether a crime was committed.[15]

Willis sent target letters to people she is investigating related to the fake electors plot. These include two Republican officials — State Senator Brandon Beach and David Shafer, chairman of the Georgia Republican Party[16] — and the 16 people who falsely presented themselves as electors.[17] She also sent a target letter to State Senator Burt Jones, but then a judge said she could not target Jones due to a conflict of interest.[18]

After hearing from 75 witnesses—including former US Sen. Kelly Loeffler, former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone,[19] and possibly Sidney Powell[20]—the special grand jury completed its work and was dissolved on January 9, 2023. On February 16, following a judge’s order, parts of the report were released.[21] The judge did not permit the release of recommendations for possible charges,[22][23][24] intending to preserve the “due process” for anyone who might be indicted later.[25] Several days later, the foreperson of the grand jury hinted that the recommendations were not “some giant plot twist” and that no one would be “surprised”.[26]

A different grand jury has yet to decide on charges.[24]

On April 24, 2023, Willis announced she would announce decisions to charge Trump and his associates during the Georgia Superior Courts’ fourth term, perhaps as soon as July or August, 2023.[27]

Atlanta gang indictments
In May 2022, Willis’ office indicted Young Thug for 56 counts of gang-related crimes under Georgia’s RICO statute and felony charges for possession of illicit firearms and drugs that were allegedly discovered after a search warrant was executed. The rapper has been held in Cobb County jail since his arrest.[28][29]

Personal life
Willis and her husband divorced in 2005. They have two daughters together.[5]