Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York John Sarcone II, the prosecutor who subpoenaed New York Attorney General Letitia James, could be disqualified over claims he was improperly appointed to his role by the Trump administration, a federal judge said Thursday.
“The only remedy, if one found an improper appointment, that would cure that would be disqualifying him,” U.S. District Judge Lorna Schofield said in an Albany courtroom during a hearing.
James is challenging Sarcone’s authority to oversee a Justice Department investigation into regulatory lawsuits she filed against Trump and the National Rifle Association.
“If I were to find that he was not properly serving as a U.S. attorney, leaving him as first assistant and the office vacant wouldn’t accomplish much.”
James, a Democrat, is disputing the legitimacy of subpoenas issued as part of Sarcone’s probe, which her lawyers say is part of a campaign of baseless investigations and prosecutions of Trump’s perceived enemies.
Her attorney, Hailyn Chen, argued in court that since Sarcone lacks legitimate authority to act as the U.S. attorney, legal steps taken by him in that capacity — like the subpoenas — are unlawful. In response to a question from U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield, Chen said Sarcone should be disqualified from the investigation and the office.
“Sarcone exercised power that he did not lawfully possess,” Chen told the judge.
Justice Department lawyers say Sarcone was appointed properly and the motion to block the subpoenas should be denied. Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Belliss argued that disqualifying Sarcone would be “drastic and extreme.”
“We don’t think that’s a proper remedy,” Belliss said.
“This court should not reach a legal conclusion that threatens to interrupt the process of the U.S. attorney’s office unnecessarily,” he told the judge. “I don’t think there’s any dispute a special attorney has the authority to issue subpoenas.”
The fight in New York and other states is largely over the legality of unorthodox strategies the Trump administration has adopted to appoint prosecutors seen as unlikely to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
The New York hearing comes a week after a federal judge in Virginia dismissed indictments brought there against James and former FBI Director James Comey. That judge concluded that the interim U.S. attorney who brought the charges, Lindsey Halligan, was unlawfully appointed. The Justice Department is expected to appeal.
On Monday, a federal appeals court ruled that Alina Habba, Trump’s former personal lawyer, is disqualified from serving as New Jersey’s top federal prosecutor.
Newsmax wires contributed to this report.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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