The Trump administration is reportedly probing the office of Letitia James, the attorney general of New York, over her fraud case against President Donald Trump last year, which resulted in a penalty of more than half a billion dollars.
The Justice Department has opened an investigation into James’ office, with the acting U.S. attorney in Albany hitting her with two subpoenas this week, according to reports.
One of the subpoenas relates to James’ fraud case against Trump, while the other involves her case against the National Rifle Association.
The federal probe is looking at whether James violated Trump’s civil rights as well as the NRA’s during those cases.
Trump and James have been locked in multiple vicious legal battles for years.
No one is above the law.
— Tish James (@TishJames) May 30, 2024
Shortly after she was elected in 2018, James promised to “use every area of the law” to go after Trump, his family, and his business, and she has made good on that vow.
In 2022, James sued Trump, accusing the New York real estate mogul and his children of lying to lenders and insurers by inflating the value of his properties by billions of dollars, including Trump Tower in Manhattan and Mar-a-Lago in Florida.
She sought to prohibit Trump and his children from running a business in New York ever again.
A judge fined Trump $300 million in the case, which has since grown to more than $500 million with interest. Trump is appealing the decision.
“No one is above the law,” James posted on X in May of last year.
James’ office also worked alongside the Manhattan district attorney’s office in its criminal investigation of Trump’s business.
On Friday, James’s lawyer called any investigation into Trump’s fraud case “the most blatant and desperate example of this administration carrying out the president’s political retribution campaign.”
“Weaponizing the Department of Justice to try to punish an elected official for doing her job is an attack on the rule of law and a dangerous escalation by this administration,” attorney Abbe Lowell added.
Trump has accused James of a vendetta against him, calling the suit a “witch hunt” and noting that James referred to Trump as an “illegitimate president” during her campaign.
Last year, James’ office won its civil fraud case against NRA head Wayne LaPierre, who led the gun rights powerhouse for more than 30 years before stepping down days before his trial.
A judge banned LaPierre from returning to lead the NRA for 10 years after a jury convicted him of taking millions of dollars from the group for his personal use.
Details about the Justice Department’s investigation into James’ office are few so far.