New York AG Letitia James is no longer facing charges after the federal fraud case against her has been dismissed
The prosecutor who initiated the case was illegally appointed, according to a federal judge who dismissed the criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James. The high-profile indictment that had charged James with bank fraud and making false claims to a financial institution was promptly overturned by the ruling on Monday.
Interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was found to lack the legal power to bring the case before a grand jury by U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie. Her appointment was declared unlawful, a decision that inevitably calls into question the validity of the indictment. The identical decision was made by the judge in the criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey.
The court stated that Halligan’s appointment breached federal criteria for interim prosecutors, so the charge had to be dismissed. Currie came to the conclusion that since Halligan’s position “was not lawfully authorized,” it could not serve as the foundation for felony charges.
There was no prejudice in the dismissal. Thus, only a duly constituted federal prosecutor may later decide to refile charges on behalf of the Department of Justice. As of right now, James’s lawsuit is legally stopped and cannot proceed.
Political attention was immediately focused on the initial charge, which was returned in October, because to James’s several high-profile civil lawsuits against Donald Trump. The federal case was faulty from the beginning, according to her legal team, and the prosecutor had no right to pursue it.
Whether the Department of Justice will try to resubmit the case before a grand jury has not been disclosed.
