Four men join bid to oust New York AG from rape case
Attorneys for co-defendants filed a petition to remove Letitia James, citing prior social media comments.
By Salma Farouk ·
Four men identified in a civil lawsuit against a former Cornell University student have aligned with a fifth defendant in an effort to disqualify New York Attorney General Letitia James from leading the state's criminal investigation into the woman's gang rape allegations. The legal move was revealed in court filings submitted Thursday.
The petition argues that James should be recused from the case because of social media posts she made before officially joining the team. In those posts, she condemned the alleged assault and voiced support for the accuser. The co-defendant’s legal team stated that the four men agreed to be added to the petition to strengthen the request for James' removal.
This development follows James' appointment of Jacqueline Kelly as outside counsel for the investigation. Kelly, a former federal prosecutor who handled sex crimes cases involving Sean Combs, will direct the team responsible for gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses. Her team will report directly to the attorney general.
A judge reviewed arguments last week regarding one defendant's request to remove James. The judge deferred ruling until he knew whether the six other defendants named in the lawsuit supported the effort. He set a Thursday deadline for the requesting lawyer to secure their backing.
The investigation was reopened under James' oversight. The criminal case concerns the gang rape allegations made by the former student. The civil lawsuit names multiple men as defendants. The new petition adds four of those men to the procedural challenge against the state's top law enforcement officer.
