A grand jury declined to indict New York Attorney General Letitia James after being requested to have a look at the mortgage fraud case in opposition to her a second time, 10 days after a federal choose threw out the preliminary expenses in opposition to her, in accordance to an individual aware of the event Thursday.
Another supply aware of the scenario stated there ought to be no untimely celebration, as a result of the Justice Department may strive to search the indictment a 3rd time.
A Justice Department spokesperson declined to touch upon grand jury issues. The grand jury was in courtroom till midday on Thursday.
The fast transfer by the Justice Department to current the case once more to a grand jury exhibits the depth of its efforts to prosecute James, a frequent Trump political goal who was certainly one of a number of enemies he has stated on social media ought to face authorized jeopardy.
Late final month, a federal choose stated that Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s handpicked prosecutor, was unlawfully appointed as an interim US legal professional and due to this fact the instances in opposition to James and one other Trump political opponent — former FBI Director James Comey — should be dismissed. Halligan, a former White House adviser, was given the job after the Justice Department pushed out the earlier interim US legal professional amid rising stress to carry instances in opposition to Comey and James.
James had pleaded not responsible to one rely of constructing false statements to a monetary establishment and one rely of financial institution fraud.
“All actions flowing from Ms. Halligan’s defective appointment” together with the indictments in opposition to Comey and James “were unlawful exercises of executive power and are hereby set aside,” Judge Cameron McGowan Currie dominated.
But Currie tossed out the instances “without prejudice,” leaving open the chance that each people might be re-charged for a similar alleged conduct.
Prosecutors, nevertheless, face an extended street forward as a number of efforts to dismiss the fees stay — together with claims of a selective and vindictive prosecution that James made earlier than the case was thrown out.
Both James and Casey have pointed to a myriad of feedback from Trump calling for them to be prosecuted, and within the case of James, have accused the government of “transforming the Department of Justice into the President’s personal agents of revenge.”
Their attorneys pointed to certainly one of Trump’s Truth Social posts, which was directed at Attorney General Pam Bondi, in September.
“Pam: I have reviewed over 30 statements and posts saying that, essentially, ‘same old story as last time, all talk, no action. Nothing is being done. What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done,’” Trump wrote, referring to Comey, James, and Sen. Adam Schiff of California.
The Justice Department has argued that the president’s social media posts weren’t directing Bondi to act, however merely saying Trump believed these individuals ought to be prosecuted as a result of they’re responsible.
In the instances in opposition to Comey and James, protection attorneys argued the 120-day interval an interim US legal professional is allowed to serve prior to affirmation from the Senate or approval from the district’s judges had already expired when Halligan took the place.
This, they stated, meant that Halligan’s appointment was illegal.
Currie agreed. She wrote that agreeing with the federal government’s place would give Trump and different officers authority “to evade the Senate confirmation process indefinitely by stacking successive 120-day appointments.”
“The 120-day clock began running with Mr. Siebert’s appointment on January 21, 2025,” she wrote, referring to Erik Siebert, who had been serving because the interim US legal professional within the Eastern District of Virginia till he was pushed out in September. (After the 120-day interval ended earlier this yr, judges within the district voted to hold him within the job.)
“When that clock expired on May 21, 2025, so too did the Attorney General’s appointment authority,” Currie wrote, including that Bondi’s “attempt to install” Halligan “was invalid and that Ms. Halligan has been unlawfully serving in that role since September 22, 2025.”
Last month’s ruling made Halligan the most recent Trump US legal professional nominee whose appointment was discovered to be illegal. Federal judges discovered the method that the Trump administration used to identify three US attorneys in New Jersey, Nevada and the Central District of California was illegal.
But not like with Halligan, judges didn’t throw out the indictments as a result of they stated there have been different assistant US attorneys who labored on the case, and the interim US attorneys’ roles have been restricted, in the event that they have been concerned in any respect. Halligan was the one one that signed the indictments for Comey and James.
This story is creating and might be up to date.