Another scandal has emerged in the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. In court, text messages were presented as evidence showing that an investigator from Willis’s office made inappropriate advances towards a witness while working on a case.
During the RICO trial of rapper Young Thug (real name Jeffrey Williams) and several co-defendants from Young Slime Life (YSL), details regarding the investigator’s actions came to light.
The investigator, identified as Hamilton, sent text messages to a female witness named A. Bennett, including one suggesting they meet up for non-work related purposes.
In one message, Hamilton wrote: “Hit me up if you’re bored later. We’re not gonna talk shop.” When questioned by Bennett’s lawyer during cross-examination, she revealed that Hamilton had expressed interest in going on a “date” with her.
“And this is February 7 of 2024, this year, when the investigator for the DA’s office is supposed to be talking to you about a case, but in fact, is calling you talking about going on a date. Is that true?” Adams asked the witness.
“Yes,” she replied.
Text message from Fani Willis' office shows investigator hitting on witness https://t.co/AiPAMqPf7i pic.twitter.com/9c8Zxv1zjx
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) April 8, 2024
On Monday, Bennett also stated in her testimony that Hamilton had referred to her as “mama” on multiple occasions.
In a text message that was shown to the court, the investigator had texted the witness, “G[ood] m[orning] Mama. Hope you slept well. Again don’t come at 1:30. I have a feeling the defense will keep this same witness from yesterday all day again today. I’ll give you an update at 3pm. You will most likely go up tomorrow morning. I’ll talk 2 u soon.”
Newsweek reported: “Bennett is testifying in the case about a robbery that Williams and two others allegedly committed in 2013. Williams and 27 others were indicted in a sweeping RICO case by Willis in May 2022. The district attorney is accusing Williams of being the kingpin of Young Slime Life, an Atlanta-based street gang affiliated with the notorious national Bloods gang.”
“The YSL trial has been underway since November and is expected to go well into 2024. Monday marks the 54th day of the trial. Monday’s text messages are the latest details in the sexual harassment allegations being raised by Williams’ defense team,” the outlet added.
Bennett testified before the court last month that Hamilton had harassed her sexually and had once told her he wanted to “take her out when the investigation was over.”
She clarified that the investigator had requested to meet with her privately at a restaurant to discuss the case, but she felt uneasy going by herself. As a result, she decided to bring her 2-year-old son along with her.
On Monday, Adams asked Bennett: “Did the fact that this employee of the district attorney’s office was trying to date you come into your mind as you were thinking about whether you would be coming in and testifying or not?”
“Yes,” she responded.
In her testimony on Monday, Bennett expressed that Adriane Love, the chief deputy district attorney, along with other members of Willis’ team, made her feel uneasy.
Despite informing the district attorney’s office that she had no additional information to provide about the alleged robbery, Bennett asserted that they continued to pester her.
Recently, Love’s legal representatives sought to have Bennett dismissed from the case by arguing that she had voluntarily and consistently involved herself in the proceedings, effectively positioning herself as a witness.
