Letitia James Is Going After Lindsey Halligan
New York attorney general Letitia James entered a not-guilty plea Friday morning to charges related to allegations of mortgage fraud in the latest instance of a prominent political foe of President Donald Trump facing federal prosecution. Her lawyers have also indicated they’ll challenge the appointment of the novice U.S. attorney who filed charges against both James and former FBI director James Comey.
Earlier this month, James was indicted on two federal counts: bank fraud and false statements to a financial institution. The attorney general was arraigned in her first court appearance on the matter in the Virginia federal courthouse.
The indictment revolves around James’s 2020 purchase of a three-bedroom home in Norfolk, Virginia, with prosecutors alleging that the attorney general rented out the property despite procuring a mortgage loan under the guise of using it as a secondary residence. According to the filing, James’s misrepresentation of her intent for the property allowed her to receive more favorable loan terms, resulting in $18,933 in “ill-gotten gains.”
Ahead of her Friday court appearance, James’s legal team gave a first look at their likely strategy to defeat the case. Her attorneys gave notice that they intend to argue for a dismissal by challenging the legality of U.S. attorney Lindsey Halligan’s appointment, a tactic that Comey’s lawyers are also pursuing.
The Justice Department’s investigation into James originated from a criminal referral made by Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte in April, which alleged James committed mortgage fraud in connection with two properties, one in Norfolk and another in Brooklyn. Neither property was ultimately part of the final indictment, however.
James addressed the allegations in a direct-to-camera statement earlier this month, denouncing the charges against her as a “continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system.”
“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost,” she said.
The attorney general’s day in court comes just weeks after the federal government revealed charges against Comey, alleging that he obstructed a congressional proceeding and made false statements in connection with his 2020 testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Both James’s and Comey’s prosecutions were pursued by Halligan, the recently appointed U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Halligan was tapped for the role after her predecessor, Erik Siebert, resigned under pressure due to his reluctance to seek charges against the two veteran public servants, as he believed the evidence in those matters was lacking. In September, Trump amped up the public pressure on the Justice Department, urging U.S. attorney general Pam Bondi to go after his many political foes:
“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,” he wrote on Truth Social. “We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility. They impeached me twice, and indicted me (5 times!), OVER NOTHING. JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!”
But reports have suggested that the evidence against James may not hold up in court. According to ABC News, the prosecutors tasked with investigating the attorney general found evidence that undermined their central argument, including a lack of records that James received any rental income from the property and statements from her grandniece who lived at the home and said that she never signed a lease nor paid rent to her great-aunt.