Former special prosecutor Nathan Wade defends investigation as independent, says some evidence reviewed in camera with January 6 staff

Nathan J. Wade, who testified under oath before the Georgia Senate Special Committee on Investigations, opened by saying he accepted the special‑assistant district attorney appointment to follow the law and that the probe he led into alleged efforts to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election "was not politically motivated or influenced." Wade said the investigation lasted roughly two years, that a special‑purpose grand jury returned indictments against 19 people in August 2023, and that four of those charged later entered guilty pleas in Georgia.

Wade said he voluntarily resigned in March 2024 after a court order that limited the DA's office's continued participation in the case unless certain conditions were met. He read into the record a letter from the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office reminding him of privileges, grand jury secrecy and confidentiality obligations and said he would answer questions within those bounds.

On contacts with outside investigators, Wade acknowledged traveling to Washington, D.C., with members of his team to review material provided in camera by an attorney associated with the congressional inquiry. "That meeting was in Washington, DC," he said. He described being shown evidence he could not retain and said the materials helped prepare the team for witness interviews; when asked about phone calls or other staff‑level contacts he said he did not recall all such calls and repeatedly cited privilege or lack of recollection for specific details.

Committee members probed Wade's invoicing. He told senators many of his invoice entries were "truncated" because billing restrictions in his contract limited the number of hours he could bill for a completed task. "Due to billing restrictions, this invoice has been significantly truncated," he read from an invoice; he said tasks often took longer than the hours entered but that billing limits required him to report a compressed figure.

On payments, Wade testified he did not know which fund source ultimately paid specific checks when the county later issued payments, noting he typically submitted invoices and expected payment without tracking the particular fund used. The committee also reviewed emails and an apparent White House letter waiving privilege for certain former administration officials; Wade confirmed the waiver appeared in the public record and acknowledged that the waiver allowed interviews of some former White House officials who then became prosecution witnesses.

Wade repeatedly declined to disclose deliberative or privileged communications, citing attorney‑client privilege, grand‑jury secrecy rules and professional conduct obligations. He told the committee he stands by the work his team produced and by the indictment that resulted from the grand jury’s process.

The committee concluded Wade’s testimony after extended questioning; no votes or formal sanctions were taken at the hearing. The chair closed the session and the committee adjourned for the day.