HUNT VALLEY, Md. — The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is investigating New York Attorney General Letitia James for possible civil rights violations committed against President Donald Trump during his prosecution for civil fraud, The New York Times reported Friday.
Acting U.S. Attorney John Sarcone III of the Northern District of New York sent to James’s office a subpoena related to Trump’s case, in which the president and his associates were ordered to pay more than $450 million for fraudulently inflating the value of their assets, the newspaper said, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
Sarcone III also reportedly sent a subpoena concerning New York’s case against the National Rifle Association that led to a 10-year ban of its former CEO from the organization. The New York Times said two of the people familiar with the subpoenas concluded the orders were part of a broader investigation to determine whether James’s office violated the rights of Trump or other people.
The DOJ did not comment on the report when reached by The National News Desk (TNND), but Abbe Lowell, who personally represents James, said in a statement that investigating the civil fraud case “has to be 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,” Lowell said. “If prosecutors carry out this improper tactic and are genuinely interested in the truth, we are ready and waiting with the facts and the law.”
James and Trump have previously sparred over multiple matters. The attorney general said in April the Trump administration was trying to “trample” the Constitution and strip Americans of fundamental rights, weeks after the president called her a “wacky crook” who should resign immediately.
A spokesperson for James’s office defended her work to TNND.
“Any weaponization of the justice system should disturb every American. We stand strongly behind our successful litigation against the Trump Organization and the National Rifle Association, and we will continue to stand up for New Yorkers’ rights,” the spokesperson said.
Trump has targeted his political opponents in various ways since the start of his second presidential term. He has promoted the idea of arresting former President Barack Obama, championed an investigation into members of the Obama administration and supported the arrest of a congresswoman who opposed his immigration agenda.
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