New York Attorney General Letitia James offered some advice to law students who want to follow in her footsteps and become a prosecutor.
“Everyone is equally entitled to the protection of the law, [and] the law should be applied equally and fairly,” James told The Hilltop, the student paper at Howard University, in a Wednesday interview. “No one should sit by idly and allow anyone to subvert the law or trespass on their rights. Individuals must stand up and not be silent in the face of injustice.”
James’ national profile has skyrocketed since she targeted former President Donald Trump and his company. She began investigating Trump and the Trump Organization for business fraud in 2019. Nearly five years later, she was handed a major win after New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron ruled in her favor and delivered a $454 million judgment against Trump in James’ case.
“It’s important to understand that the case we brought [against Trump] was not a criminal case—it was a civil case,” James told the university newspaper.
“What we are seeking is some injunctive term that the former president does not engage in this pattern and practice of fraud in the state of New York going forward and that we disgorge him of all of the profits that he benefited from as a result of his mistakes,” she said.
James, who received her Juris Doctor from Howard University’s School of Law, said she decided to pursue a career in public service because “I saw a need in my community and wanted to put a voice to all the individuals who are struggling each and every day.”
“I wanted to feel and be a part of that history, recognizing that it flows through my DNA, but it needed to be awakened,” she said.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
On Monday, a New York appeals court handed Trump a lifeline, reducing his bond to $175 million. The presumptive GOP nominee for president had been scrambling to find enough money to secure a $454 million bond while he appeals Engoron’s judgment against him. While Trump could still appeal without putting up the bond, James would be allowed to seize his assets, even as the appeals process plays out, without a bond.
Trump was at risk of losing control over his bank accounts and even some of his properties, which James had signaled she was prepared to seize assets if Trump could not pay up.
In a statement responding to Monday’s appeals court decision to reduce the bond, James said: “Donald Trump is still facing accountability for his staggering fraud. The court has already found that he engaged in years of fraud to falsely inflate his net worth and unjustly enrich himself, his family, and his organization.
“The $464 million judgment—plus interest—against Donald Trump and the other defendants still stands,” she said.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.