What comes next in New York's investigation of Donald Trump
NEW YORK (AP) — After investigating former President Donald Trump for several years, New York Attorney General Letitia James used a court filing Tuesday to outline much of the evidence her investigators have gathered so far. The legal memo claimed the Republican's company used “fraudulent or misleading” valuations of its assets while seeking loans and tax breaks.
Here's what this development could mean for Trump and his namesake company:
IS DONALD TRUMP ACCUSED OF A CRIME?
At this point, he hasn't been charged with any wrongdoing. New York's attorney general has yet to decide whether she even wants to file a civil lawsuit.
WHO IS LETITIA JAMES?
New York's attorney general, a Democrat elected in 2018, sued Trump multiple times on behalf of the state over his policies as president. She has also sued the National Rifle Association and was instrumental in Gov. Andrew Cuomo's fall from power. She released a report over the summer saying the Democrat sexually harassed 11 women. James briefly ran for governor this past fall before deciding to run for reelection as attorney general.
WHAT IS SHE INVESTIGATING?
James’ office has been examining whether the Trump Organization got loans or tax breaks by lying about the value of Trump's assets. Long before he became president, Trump was scrutinized over claims about the size of his personal fortune and the value of his properties. It isn’t illegal to fib to the public about how much your penthouse is worth, but it could be a crime to lie about the value of assets to banks, business partners or tax authorities.
WHAT HAS SHE FOUND SO FAR?
Her office said investigators had found a pattern in which the Trump Organization had used dubious or unsupported methods to exaggerate the worth of things it owned.
In one example out of many, the...
