{"id":762,"date":"2026-05-29T20:12:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T20:12:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=762"},"modified":"2026-05-29T20:12:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-29T20:12:10","slug":"ag-letitia-james-accused-of-misusing-20m-to-hire-outside-laywers-to-do-her-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=762","title":{"rendered":"AG Letitia James accused of misusing $20M to hire outside laywers to do her work"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

New York Attorney General Letitia James was accused by her GOP challenger Friday of misusing a whopping $20 million to hire outside lawyers to do her office\u2019s work.<\/p>\n

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The claims from Republican AG candidate Saritha Komatireddy, a former federal prosecutor, came as state Democrats quietly expanded the scope of a $10 million legal defense fund, set up last year to help their embattled comrades like James.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe $10 million legal defense fund set aside for Letitia James\u2019s personal legal troubles is an insult to hardworking taxpayers who are already struggling with the highest costs in the nation,\u201d Komatireddy railed in a statement to The Post.<\/p>\n

Komatireddy also questioned why James has allegedly spent tens of millions of taxpayer dollars to bring in outside law firms to represent her office.<\/p>\n

Around 145 lawyers at those same firms gave a combined $23,000 to James\u2019 campaign, Komatireddy pointed out.<\/p>\n

Those included Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP \u2013 a ritzy white shoe firm that\u2019s on a $575,000 retainer to represent the AG\u2019s office in a sexual harassment suit filed by a former senior aide.<\/p>\n

Gov. Kathy Hochul\u2019s husband, Bill Hochul, is paid roughly $1.3 million a year by Davis Polk, though he does not handle matters involving the state, according to the governor\u2019s financial disclosure form.<\/p>\n

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Meanwhile, lawmakers in Albany renewed the defense fund to help their embattled fellow pols with outside legal expenses, such as James, as the feds continue to try to nab her for alleged fraud related to a mortgage application for a home in Virginia.<\/p>\n

Follow live updates on Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s socialist agenda and the latest in NYC politics<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

James ultimately never dipped into the pot of cash, instead opting for a much shadier fund routed through the Democratic Attorneys Generals Association.<\/p>\n

But the state Legislature not only kept the fund on the books again this year, but also expanded the list of legal expenses officials can submit for reimbursement.<\/p>\n

Now, any statewide elected official could have taxpayers pick up their tab if they get dragged into a hearing or slapped with an indictment.<\/p>\n

\u201cInstead of taking care of the homeless, the mentally ill, the drug addicted, and repeat offenders, AG James just takes care of herself. It\u2019s time to end this self-dealing and corruption,\u201d Komatireddy said.<\/p>\n

Read more Steelers mysteriously fire coach after just three-plus months<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New York Attorney General Letitia James was accused by her GOP challenger Friday of misusing a whopping $20 million to hire outside lawyers to do her office\u2019s work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":761,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-762","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-metro"],"yoast_head":"\nAG Letitia James accused of misusing $20M to hire outside laywers to do her work - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=762\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"AG Letitia James accused of misusing $20M to hire outside laywers to do her work - 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