After testifying in Atlanta, Willis receives both praise and condemnation

There was a rare point of consensus on the case brought by Georgia prosecutors against former President Donald J. Trump: Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis likely made a mistake by having a romantic relationship with a colleague.

But that's where the similarity ends.

As people in Atlanta and its suburbs digested harrowing and emotional testimony, what they saw was not just Ms. Willis' behavior, but a test of their views on race, gender, justice and the city they call home.

Ms. Willis' harshest critics, supporters of the former president, relished what they saw as the mistake that could take her off the case — jeopardizing, if not entirely torpedoing, a prosecution that some legal experts are considered one of the most forceful against Mr. Willis. Trump.

The biggest fear of some of her supporters is that those critics are right.

“I wish she had made better decisions,” says Andrea Maia, a recent college graduate living in Atlanta, who is otherwise sympathetic to and supportive of Ms. Willis. “I wouldn't have done it.”

The testimony came as part of a hearing this week to decide whether Ms. Willis's romantic and financial relationship with Nathan Wade, an outside lawyer she hired to help lead the prosecution, amounted to a conflict of interest and whether she should be removed from the case had to be removed. .

The hearing — and the broader turbulence over the relationship — has been closely watched by many in Fulton County, who would form the jury in a trial and ultimately decide whether Ms. Willis, who is up for re-election, should remain in office.

But the response to her testimony – which she decided to give despite the doubts of some colleagues – has also generated sympathy and increased support, as many believe she should stay on the case and that her personal life should not be shown so vividly . .

“I think some people will probably walk away from this testimony with more confidence in Fani Willis,” said Adrienne Jones, a political science professor at Morehouse College in Atlanta, who watched the testimony and was disturbed by the spectacle surrounding it.

“She braved the breach and said I'm going to speak for myself here and tell you what's going on,” Professor Jones said. “Some people will respect that.”

Jessica Browne, who lives in Atlanta, said she was one of them.

She acknowledged that she knew little about Ms. Willis or the details of the case in which Mr. Trump and his allies were accused of conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia.

“I appreciated the way she defended herself,” Ms Browne, 42, said.

“She has not broken any laws,” she added. “Donald Trump did that.”

The stakes were high at the hearing, as many of Mr. Trump's opponents fear the prosecution could fall apart if Ms. Willis is ousted and the case is assigned to another prosecutor in Georgia, who could make changes to the case or could drop it entirely.

“I think a lot of people saw this case as one of the stronger, if not the strongest, case against Trump,” said Zachary Peskowitz, an associate professor of political science at Emory.

If Ms. Willis is removed from the case and progress is not made as Mr. Trump's critics hope, the outcome could have disastrous political consequences for Ms. Willis. “That will be devastating,” he said.

But even if Ms. Willis stays, some fear the attention paid to the relationship and allegations of impropriety could undermine the prosecution.

“It creates doubt in the minds of members of a Fulton County jury, it creates doubt in the prosecution process,” Professor Jones said. She added: “These are all negative points that distract our attention from the question of whether or not the former president and his colleagues have the right under Georgian law to engage in the type of behavior they engaged in.”

Chris Sandbach, a personal injury attorney, called the hearing a “political circus.” He said he did not believe there was “any objective evidence of any wrongdoing.”

“This was a public smear, for lack of a better word,” he said. “This is not defense, this is politics.”

But Scottie Dennis, Jr., 39, believed the entire prosecution was motivated by politics and hostility toward Mr. Trump.

“Everyone and his mother knows, as we say here in the South, that if he did not run for re-election, there would be no case against him,” said Mr. Dennis, a supporter of Mr. Trump who lives in Northwest Atlanta.

Ms. Willis' detractors who are enjoying the situation are not only political adversaries but also the kinds of enemies prosecutors create in their work, such as Latasha Kendrick, the mother of Yak Gotti, one of the rappers charged in a racketeering case that was filed by Ms. Willis against YSL, prosecutors have characterized the rap record label as a gang.

“She's about to get a taste of her own medicine,” Ms. Kendrick said as she watched the hearing from the Atlanta courthouse. “She doesn't look like the big bad wolf anymore.”

Some argue that Ms. Willis has faced additional scrutiny because of her race and gender.

“If she had not been a woman and black, I don't think she would have gone through this,” said Bishop Reginald T. Jackson, the presiding prelate of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Georgia, who has been a vocal ally of Ms. Willis and has been praying and counseling with her privately in recent weeks.

“What it was all about was distraction and delay,” he said. “I think it's time to move on.”

Kamina Pinder, a law professor at Emory University, agreed that Ms. Willis should not be disqualified, but found her actions — including having a relationship with a lawyer who worked for her — troubling.

“Everything she does is scrutinized, so it's just bizarre that she's doing this,” Professor Pinder said. “As a Black woman, I know there are unique challenges when you are in a position of power, but that does not excuse behavior that was questionable and unethical.”

Devon Rogers, 37, a musician who recently moved to Atlanta from Memphis, said circumstances seem to confirm that romance can give way to unwise choices.

He had seen questions in news reports about Mr. Wade's qualifications for the position. “I don't know if that's true,” he said. “But how can she even risk putting him there?”

Her actions, he said, could damage the case and provide Trump's lawyers with material that could help him avoid a conviction.

'Should she be disqualified? I can't say,” Mr. Rogers said. “But I think she's been her own worst enemy.”