NORFOLK, Virginia — New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty on Friday to federal charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution, rejecting prosecutors’ claims that she lied on a 2020 mortgage application to obtain favorable loan terms for a Virginia property.
James, 67, appeared before U.S. District Judge Jamar Walker, who was appointed to the federal bench by former President Joe Biden, during a morning arraignment at the Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse in Norfolk. The proceeding marked a dramatic turn for the New York Democrat, who campaigned on and built her political profile by bringing a civil fraud lawsuit against President Donald Trump and his business prior to his reelection.
As James stood at the lectern alongside her attorney Abbe Lowell, Walker asked her if she understood the charges and what plea she would enter.
“Not guilty to both counts,” James stated affirmatively.
Walker then proceeded to chart out a date for a trial, and parties eventually landed on a tentative date of Jan. 26.
U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, who penned the lone signature on the indictment for James, was present but did not speak outside of whispers to her government colleagues and to Lowell briefly before the proceedings began. She has tapped Missouri-based federal attorney Roger Keller to lead the case.
Keller at first asked Walker for a possible trial duration of two weeks, noting there would be between eight and 10 witnesses brought during the trial. But Walker was reluctant to allow a trial to extend past 10 days, saying he would be open to considering a five-day trial.
On the eve of the arraignment, James’s counsel filed a notice that they intend to challenge the legality of Halligan’s appointment, echoing arguments raised by the defense team for former FBI Director James Comey, who was arraigned one day before her indictment came down.
Both parties agreed Thursday to allow James’s removal effort to become consolidated with Comey’s effort, which is slated for a Nov. 13 oral argument hearing in South Carolina federal court in order to avoid any conflicts of interest. If Halligan is removed, it does not mean the criminal cases go away, though both James and Comey are respectively making bids to dismiss their indictments on selective and vindictive prosecution motions.
“I think the worst-kept secret in this case is we have an equally meritorious claim for selective and vindictive prosecution,” Lowell told Walker.
Additionally, Walker will soon weigh a request by James to order that the government create a log of all its communications related to the case in light of an incident this week in which Halligan sent disappearing messages on Signal to a reporter. In response, Keller said if the government should be required to make a log, so too should James’s counsel. The judge set an expedited briefing schedule and a deadline of Oct. 30 for parties to submit their arguments about imposing communications logs on each other.
A federal grand jury indicted James earlier this month, accusing her of falsely claiming a Norfolk home was her personal second residence when it was instead rented to a family of three, including one relative who is wanted by North Carolina authorities. The alleged misrepresentation, prosecutors say, allowed her to save about $50 per month over the life of the loan and resulted in her obtaining roughly $19,000 in ill-gotten gains.
The case is being prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, the interim top prosecutor for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Roger Keller, a Missouri-based federal attorney detailed to assist in public corruption and financial crime cases.
James has called the charges “baseless” and politically motivated and alleged the case is retribution against her by the president, pointing to Trump’s Truth Social post last month urging Attorney General Pam Bondi to “take action” against her and two other longtime critics.
As time drew closer to her 11 a.m. arraignment, some supporters of James appeared outside the building, some chanting “We stand with Tish” as she walked out alongside Lowell.
When James stepped up to the press microphones, she said, “I want to thank each and every one of you for your prayers, for your emails, for your support. It has strengthened my spirit. But this isn’t about me. This is about all of us and a justice system that has been weaponized and used as a tool of revenge.”
Before the hearing ended, Walker set a Nov. 3 deadline for parties to confer about sending discovery information to the defense, and set a deadline for the defense’s motion for selective and vindictive prosecution for Nov. 7. The government’s deadline to respond to that motion is Nov. 21, and the defense’s reply is due Nov. 28. Walker also said he would hold a hearing on Dec. 17 to weigh any additional motions to consider ahead of a trial.
Her indictment came one day after Comey was charged in the same district with lying to Congress and obstructing an investigation. Halligan’s office is also overseeing that case. Both Comey and former national security adviser John Bolton, who was arraigned last week, have pleaded not guilty.
LETITIA JAMES TO BE ARRAIGNED IN VIRGINIA ON FEDERAL MORTGAGE FRAUD CHARGES
If convicted, James faces up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine, though first-time offenders typically receive far lesser penalties under federal sentencing guidelines.
