A federal grand jury in Norfolk, Virginia, on Thursday refused to return an indictment for New York Attorney General Letitia James, marking yet another setback for President Donald Trump’s Justice Department in its bid to prosecute her.
However, reported MS NOW’s Carol Leonnig, two sources tell her this isn’t the end of the DOJ’s attempts to bring the case.
“We have two sources confirming that the grand jury did not agree to indict Letitia James today,” said Leonnig. “That does not mean that the Justice Department won’t attempt again to do this. We’ve sought Department of Justice comment, and they have given us comment and not discussed the grand jury decision, not discussed the details, but have said that there should be no ‘premature celebrations,’ quote unquote. But our understanding from two sources is that the grand jury did not agree to indict and charge Letitia James with mortgage fraud today.”
A grand jury decision not to agree to any charges is called a “no true bill,” and is exceptionally rare in federal cases because prosecutors get to present the outline of their case unchallenged.
The case stems from an allegation made by the Trump administration’s federal housing finance director, Bill Pulte, that he had obtained documents that show she misstated a home’s purpose as primary use while obtaining a loan to obtain more favorable terms.
But other documents uncovered by reporters contradict the idea that the home’s purpose was indicated incorrectly, and James, as well as many legal observers, have theorized that the case is simply revenge ordered by Trump for the investigations James has made into him and his family business.
An indictment against James was originally secured by acting Eastern District of Virginia prosecutor Lindsey Halligan, but was tossed after a judge determined Halligan was unlawfully appointed to that role, rendering the charges null and void.
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