Former President Donald Trump and the Trump Organization have sued New York Attorney General Letitia James to ask a federal court to halt or limit her office’s ongoing investigations. The lawsuit from Trump comes on the heels of James’ office seeking to depose Trump as part of its civil fraud investigation into the Trump Organization, also seeks to enjoin James’ involvement in any civil or criminal actions against the former President or his company. James’ office is investigating whether the Trump Organization manipulated the value of its properties, and is also working with Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance’s office on a parallel criminal investigation into the Trump Organization. The two investigations are separate, but some attorneys from James’ office have been designated to work on the criminal investigation, which is ongoing.
Filed in federal court in Northern New York on Monday, the lawsuit accuses James of misconduct, claiming she has abused her investigatory powers to target her political adversaries and advance her career. The suit states: “Since taking office, she has tirelessly bombarded him, his family and his business, Trump Organization LLC, with unwarranted subpoenas in a bitter crusade to ‘take on’ the President.” The suit also accuses James of “relentlessly pushing” Vance’s office into a criminal investigation of the Trump Organization. A spokesman for Vance’s office declined to comment.
James responded to the suit in a statement Monday, saying the Trump Organization has repeatedly attempted to delay her office’s investigation into its business dealings. James said in a statement: “To be clear, neither Mr. Trump nor the Trump Organization get to dictate if and where they will answer for their actions. Our investigation will continue undeterred because no one is above the law, not even someone with the name Trump.”
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