Mark Pomerantz, a prosecutor from Manhattan claimed in his resignation letter that former President Donald Trump “is guilty of numerous felony violations”, with regards to the probe launched into his giant business firm.
Pomerantz, along with Carey Dunne, abruptly resigned last month. Both were top prosecutors on the Manhattan district attorney’s criminal investigation of Trump,
“As you know from our recent conversations and presentations, I believe that Donald Trump is guilty of numerous felony violations of the Penal Law in connection with the preparation and use of his annual Statements of Financial Conditions.” -read an excerpt from Pomerantz’ resignation letter, published in the New York Times.
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“No doubt whether Trump committed the crimes – he did” -wrote
Mark Pomerantz writes that there is no question of whether the former president actually committed the crimes or not. He firmly believes that he did. He also accused Trump of “fabricating information related to personal finances” and “lying to the American people” in his letter.
“His (Trump’s) financial statements were false and he has a long history of fabricating information relating to his personal finances and lying about his assets to banks, the national media, counterparties and many others, including the American people. The team that has been investigating Mr. Trump harbours no doubt about whether he committed crimes–he did.”
Pomerantz also mentioned former District Attorney Cyrus Vance, who retired in December 2021 in his letter, saying that Vance directed the team to present the evidence and seek indictment of Trump “as soon as reasonably possible”.
“Cyrus Vance directed a thorough review of the facts and law relating to Mr. Trump’s financial statements.” -wrote Pomerantz. “Mr. Vance had been intimately involved in our investigation, attending grand jury presentations, sitting in on certain witness interviews and receiving regular reports about the progress of the investigation. He concluded that the facts warranted prosecution,and he directed a team to present evidence to a grand jury and to seek an indictment of Mr. Trump and other defendants as soon as reasonably possible”.
Alvin Bragg pulling back from indicting Trump “shameful”
Alvin Bragg, who took over the position of District Attorney after Vance’s retirement, has been a recent subject of disdain over his decision to pull back from indicting the former President for his alleged crimes. According to Pomerantz’ resignation, Bragg’s hesitation might “doom any future prospects” of prosecuting Trump for the crimes he is alleged to have committed.
Numerous lawmakers and legal experts have taken to social media and other outlets to express their views regarding the situation.
“No question anymore. Bragg stopped (the) indictment of Trump. He must explain. And, I want to hear from Pomerantz,” tweeted a legal analyst from MSNBC, Jill Wine-Banks.
Richard Signorelli, former assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, made a slew of tweets from his Twitter handle, calling Bragg “incompetent” and “unreasonably risk adverse and cowardly” for his decision.
“From his first day in office, [Bragg] has made one mistake after another, literally jeopardizing public safety. His incompetence in office has made him unreasonably risk adverse & cowardly w/ regard to holding Trump accountable for his career of criminality. Shameful. We ended up electing as Manhattan DA the absolute worst candidate of all. Cowardly, incompetent, & a danger to public safety. I apologize again for having supported him.”
In another Tweet, Signorelli said, “Dear Bragg, If there is one mistake that you make which will be unforgivable & unforgettable to us in Manhattan it will be not holding Trump accountable for his criminality, guaranteed. You can still fix this. Make your peace w/ Pomerantz & Dunne & indict the [piece of s**t] sociopath.”
Robert J. DeNault, a New York attorney, said that New York will “demand an explanation” for Bragg’s condemnable decision to pull back from prosecuting Donald Trump.
“Within weeks of assuming office, [he] overrode both his predecessor and line prosecutors, who had all concluded Donald Trump was guilty of multiple felonies and decided to prosecute him,” said DeNault.
Investigation into the matter has not stopped, said Bragg’s spokesperson
Danielle Filson, a spokesperson for Bragg, issued a statement to The Times, claiming that the investigation has not been brought to a halt.
“A team of experienced prosecutors is working every day to follow the facts and the law. There is nothing more we can or should say at this juncture about an ongoing investigation.”
Mr. Trump caught in a whirlwind of legal troubles
The probe launched by the Manhattan District Attorney is not the only thing consisting of the former President’s legal troubles.
Alabama Senate Candidate Mo Brooks made a statement last week in response to Trump pulling his endorsement, in which he made an extraordinary claim that the ex-president had urged the Alabama Republican to help overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
Brooks’ claim could possibly open up new avenues in the House Jan. 6 Select Committee’s probe launched in order to investigate Donald Trump’s involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot that left 5 people dead.
“President Trump asked me to rescind the 2020 elections, immediately remove Joe Biden from the White House, immediately put President Trump back in the White House, and hold a new special election for the presidency,” -said Brooks. “As a lawyer, I’ve repeatedly advised President Trump that January 6 was the final election contest verdict and neither the U.S. Constitution nor the U.S. Code permit what President Trump asks. Period.”
Brooks later claimed in comments to news outlets that the ex-president had requested him to make such a move as early as last September. Brooks’ statement marks the first time that a Trump ally has accused the former president of such allegations.
Mr. Trump is also faced with troubles created by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who launched her own investigation, running parallel with Alvin Bragg’s, into Trump’s business and finances and has been going on for over two years now.
James claims that the former President has been extremely slow-paced in turning over documents regarding his business in response to her subpoenas. Trump has only turned over ten personal business documents to date, as revealed by the New York AG’s lawyers in court.
