Justice Department indicts Letitia James after pressure from Trump

A federal grand jury in Virginia has indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James on charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution, following pressure from President Trump. James, a Democrat, had previously sued Trump and his company for inflating property values, winning over $450 million in a civil case. The indictment alleges James lied on her mortgage application for a property in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2020, renting it out despite claiming it would be a secondary residence. James denied the charges, calling them baseless and criticizing Trump's actions as a violation of the constitutional order. Federal prosecutors spent months investigating the case, but a Republican career prosecutor initially found insufficient evidence. The prosecutor was then replaced by Lindsey Halligan, a former insurance lawyer with no prosecutorial experience, who secured the indictment. The charges against James have been pushed by Ed Martin, a Justice Department official who has been criticized for targeting Democratic figures. James's lawyer expressed concern that the case is driven by Trump's desire for revenge. James is scheduled for an initial court appearance on October 24.