Letitia James Faces Mortgage Fraud Arraignment

New York Attorney General Letitia James is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in federal court in Norfolk, Virginia, on a two-count indictment charging bank fraud and making false statements over her 2020 purchase of a Norfolk home. Prosecutors allege she falsely claimed the property would be a second residence to obtain a lower-rate mortgage while instead treating it as a rental occupied by a family member’s household, saving roughly $18,000 over the life of the loan; the indictment cites a $137,000 purchase and a $109,600 mortgage. James denies wrongdoing, has called the charges politically motivated "weaponization" by President Trump, and is expected to plead not guilty; her lawyers plan to move to dismiss the indictment, arguing interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was improperly appointed, and have sought limits on prosecutors’ public disclosures. The case was brought by Halligan, a Trump appointee whose role and alleged contacts with a reporter have drawn defense scrutiny and was pursued despite objections from career prosecutors. The arraignment, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jamar Walker at the Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse, is being watched as part of a series of prosecutions of Trump critics that critics say raise concerns about political interference in the Justice Department.