An employee from the Acumen Winery has confirmed Georgia district attorney Fani Willis paid in cash during her 2023 visit.

Stan Brody alleged Willis spent $400 in cash for a wine tasting and two bottles of wine, sharing the company of a male companion. Serving as a wine ambassador at Napa Valley’s Acumen Winery in California at the time, the self-described “news junkie” said the memory resurfaced while watching Willis’ special hearing on Feb. 16. 

Willis was in the hot seat for two days after a motion was filed accusing her and special prosecutor Nathan Wade of having an inappropriate relationship. It further alleged Willis benefited financially by hiring Wade to work with her on the 2020 presidential interference election case. However, while on the stand, Willis testified that whenever the pair would travel, Wade was always reimbursed in cash, staying true to her independence. 

After hearing her testimony, Brody remembered Willis standing out as people usually paid with credit cards and commended her generosity.

“It’s not the norm,” he recounted her visit to the winery. “The bill was a little over $400 with the taxes and everything else on it. So she probably gave me $500.”

Brody also clarified that he has not been in contact with the District Attorney’s Office or defense lawyers who are looking to disqualify Willis from the case.

The Fulton County DA testified that she always had cash on hand following advice from her father, telling her to have close to six months’ worth at a time.

“I always have cash at the house,” Willis told attorneys. Brody had a chance to meet the pair but was unaware of who they were as their encounter occurred before the indictment of former President Donald Trump.

However, once the employee asked about their professions, both Wade and Willis made it known they were criminal law attorneys. 

While Willis is also being investigated by the Senate Special Committee on Investigations and the House Judiciary Committee, the special hearing is set to reconvene in late February or early March 2024 with the expected presentation of summations or final arguments.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee will hand down the removal decision.
Trump also filed a dismissal motion following a speech Willis delivered on Jan. 14 at Bethel AME Church, accusing her speech of inciting “racial animus.”