A federal grand jury in Norfolk, Virginia, declined to indict New York Attorney General Letitia James for alleged mortgage fraud on Thursday, sources report, Baltimore Chronicle. This decision came just ten days after a federal judge dismissed an earlier case due to the unlawful appointment of the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia.
Federal prosecutors were unable to persuade the majority of grand jurors to approve charges claiming that James misled a bank to secure favorable terms on a home mortgage. The grand jury’s “no true bill” ruling represents a significant rebuke of the Department of Justice’s attempt to pursue criminal charges against James, a political opponent of former President Donald Trump who has faced repeated calls from Trump for prosecution.
A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment on the development. In response, James expressed gratitude to the grand jurors.
“As I have said from the start, the charges against me are baseless,” James stated. “It is time for this unchecked weaponization of our justice system to stop.”
Prosecutors had alleged that James, who successfully brought a civil fraud case against Trump last year, misrepresented a home she purchased in 2020 as a second home rather than an investment property to potentially save $19,000 over the life of the loan by obtaining a more favorable mortgage rate.
Following a direct call from Trump to prosecute James and other political adversaries, the president’s former attorney and aide Lindsey Halligan secured an indictment against James in October. However, a federal judge later dismissed the indictment, ruling that Halligan had been unlawfully serving as U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia.
U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie concluded that the attorney general did not have the authority under federal law to appoint Halligan, invalidating actions taken by her, including the indictments against both James and former FBI Director James Comey.
It remains unclear whether prosecutors will again attempt to bring charges against Comey related to allegations of false statements to Congress in 2020. Both Comey and James have mounted legal challenges to the indictments, arguing they were subjected to vindictive prosecution at the direct orders of Trump—claims that may influence judges in determining whether the cases should proceed to trial.
Investigations into James’ mortgage dealings had revealed evidence that appeared to weaken some of the allegations in the September indictment, including limiting the extent to which James personally benefited from her property purchase.
Earlier we wrote that Letitia James Challenges Grand Jury Subpoenas Targeting Trump and NRA in Albany Court.
