In her first public appearance since she was indicted on federal charges, New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday spoke out against those who she said “weaponize justice for political gain.”
“We see powerful voices trying to silence truth and punish dissent,” James told the crowd during a campaign rally for New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. “We are witnessing the fraying of our democracy, the erosion of our system of government.”
James was indicted last week on charges of alleged fraud, becoming the second political figure in a span of two weeks to face prosecution after President Donald Trump’s public demand that the Justice Department move “now” to charge his political enemies.
The attorney general, who successfully brought a civil fraud case against Trump last year and leads multiple lawsuits challenging his administration’s policies, was indicted on a federal charge of bank fraud and a charge of making false statements to a financial institution.
James was greeted with a standing ovation on Monday as she stood at the podium with her fist held in the air.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images – PHOTO: NYC Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani Holds Rally Ahead Of Nov. Election
“I will not bow. I will not break. I will not bend,” she told the crowd at the United Palace in Washington Heights. “You come for me, you’ve got to come through all of us. Every single one of us. We’re all in this together.”
“I know what it feels like to be attacked for just doing your job,” James said.
James then told the audience that over the past few days she has been remembering the strength of her ancestors, who survived adversity and assured the crowd that she “will keep fighting for justice.”
James said that Mamdani, like herself, “knows what it’s like to be attacked, to be called names, to be threatened, to be harassed.”
She praised Mamdani for his affordability agenda, calling the Democratic nominee for mayor “one of the boldest voices in the history of New York politics” before introducing him.
“We are ready to turn the page on the cynical, broken politics of the past,” James said.
Newly appointed U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Lindsey Halligan announced the charges against James, who is ordered to appear in court on Oct. 24 in Norfolk, Virginia.
Roy Rochlin/Getty Images | Leon Neal/Getty Images – PHOTO: Attorney General of New York Letitia James speaks onstage during the 39th Annual Brooklyn Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Jan. 20, 2025, in New York. President Donald Trump attends a press conference, Sept. 18, 2025, in Aylesbury, England.
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“No one is above the law. The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the public’s trust,” Halligan said in a statement on Oct. 9 announcing the charges. “The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served.”
Prosecutors allege that James misled a bank in order to get more favorable terms on a loan, specifically claiming that a property was going to be a secondary residence, when, according to prosecutors, it was going to be rented out for profit.
However, following a five-month investigation and interviews with more than a dozen witnesses, federal prosecutors uncovered no clear evidence against James, sources told ABC News.
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system,” James in a statement following the indictment. “He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General.”
“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost,” she said.
