New York Attorney General Letitia James is challenging the legitimacy of the acting U.S. attorney in Albany as she pushes back against the Trump administration’s investigation of cases she brought against the president and the National Rifle Association, according to court documents unsealed Friday.
James in August filed a motion to block subpoenas issued by acting U.S. Attorney John Sarcone for records related to the legal actions, claiming the Justice Department’s probe of the cases was retaliatory.
She also argued that Sarcone had been improperly appointed to his position and, as a result, lacked legitimate authority to authorize the subpoenas.
The subpoenas seek records related to a major civil case the Democrat James filed against President Donald Trump over alleged fraud in his personal business dealings. Another subpoena seeks records from a lawsuit involving the National Rifle Association and two senior executives.
Dozens of court documents in the case have been filed under seal in U.S. District Court since August. A federal judge in Manhattan late Friday granted James’ motion to unseal most of the entries, making them public over the objection of the Justice Department.
Judge Lorna Schofield, however, has not yet ruled on the motion to quash the subpoenas.
“Unsealing this action is not only permissible but compelled,” she wrote. “One simple fact drives this conclusion: the information at issue is not secret.”
An email seeking comment was sent to Sarcone’s office. A phone message was not immediately returned late Friday.
James has accused the Trump administration of using the justice system as a “tool of revenge” against adversaries. The attorney general has sued Trump and his Republican administration dozens of times over his policies as president and over how he conducted his private business empire.
In October, James was indicted in a federal mortgage fraud case the president pressed the Justice Department to bring. She pleaded not guilty Monday allegations she lied on mortgage papers to get favorable loan terms when purchasing a house in Norfolk, Virginia, where she has family.
In her motion to quash Sarcone’s subpoenas, James cited anonymous media reports that they were part of a grand jury investigation into allegations that James violated Trump’s civil rights in 2022 when her office sued Trump, then a private businessman.
She argued Sarcone lacked authority to issue the subpoenas because he was improperly appointed by the Trump administration.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Sarcone to serve as the interim U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York in March. With the expiration of the 120-day interim term, Bondi designated him as first assistant U.S. attorney for the district, essentially improperly extending his role as acting U.S. attorney, according to James.
James’ lawyers in the mortgage fraud case have said they intend to challenge the appointment of the prosecutor, Lindsey Halligan, on similar grounds.
The indictment in that case followed the resignation of Erik Siebert as U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Siebert was replaced with Halligan, a White House aide and former Trump lawyer who had never previously served as a federal prosecutor, and presented James’ case to the grand jury herself.
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