Republican attorney general candidate Saritha Komatireddy has dropped a scathing 52-count “open indictment” against Democratic incumbent Letitia James, accusing her of “dereliction of duty” ahead of Thursday’s debate.
The sweeping charges are part of a brazen campaign stunt by former federal prosecutor Komatreddy, who claims her opponent has been too busy targeting President Trump during two terms to address the needs of New Yorkers.
“The people are not accusing the defendant of doing nothing. They are accusing her of being busy doing the wrong things,” said Komatreddy, who also named the “angry people of New York State” as plaintiffs.
“While the defendants built a national reputation, much of the office’s work was wasted,” she charged.
The “crimes” against James in the forged court documents include failing to intervene when New Yorkers froze to death last winter, allowing mentally ill and repeat offenders to stab innocent bystanders, supporting New York’s controversial cashless bail law and causing an increase in crime and homelessness during her tenure.
“New Yorkers froze on the sidewalks. New Yorkers were pushed onto the subway tracks by people familiar with every part of the system. New Yorkers were burned alive in train cars,” the lawsuit states.
“A family of five, including three young children, died in a fire at an Endville motel that was being used by a county as a shelter. A Buffalo mother was shot and killed in front of her three children by a man who was released from custody the day before court.”
The Republican candidate accused James of “failing to aggressively prosecute Medicaid fraud and benefit fraud or contract theft, or investigate tax-exempt nonprofits, including those that operate homeless shelters.”
Komatireddy also claimed that the opioid settlement money won in the deceased’s name was “spent on snow blowers and headphones,” and that shelter executives allegedly received seven-figure payouts from James’ increased benefits.
The filing states that James failed to push to close government-funded injection sites that are illegal under federal law, nor did she advocate closing the “involuntary intoxication loophole” in state law that makes it more difficult to prosecute rape cases.
That breach has faced new scrutiny in light of the Cornell 7 case, where Gov. Kathy Hochul recently appointed James as a special prosecutor to reinvestigate the sexual assault allegations — despite critics arguing the attorney general was biased by her previous comments siding with accusers.
“When the law prohibits prosecutors from charging rape, it is the chief law enforcement officer’s job to change it,” Komatreddy wrote. “Defendant (James) held eight legislative sessions and had a legislative body led by her own party. The People found no evidence other than a single social media post that she made the bill a priority.”
Komatireddy’s “Request for Relief” listed in the filing asks voters to remove James on Nov. 3 in order to “return the office to the prosecutor and enable the prosecutor to use his authority for the purposes for which it was delegated.”
“Lock up repeat offenders, bring New Yorkers with dangerous mental illnesses indoors for treatment, and root out fraud that steals from the poor, sick, and taxpayers.”
Komatireddy said the demands also include the establishment of a civil commitment office under the purview of the Attorney General, staffed with law enforcement professionals and doctors to address the issue of mentally unstable people roaming the streets.
Her complaint names more than three dozen victims who were allegedly killed or seriously injured by violent repeat offenders or mentally ill individuals who should be incarcerated.
The alleged charges of dereliction of duty include:
- Items 1 through 11 consider keeping the mentally ill and homeless on the streets. “People found no evidence that over eight winters she (James) created a mechanism to file lawsuits or make demands to protect homeless people from the cold, that she sent the Charity Bureau to inspect conditions inside individual shelters, or that she sought a commitment from a New Yorker who was too sick to go indoors,” the lawsuit states.
- Counts 12 to 22 highlight repeat offenders, subway pushers and the “war on police.” Komatreddy claimed James “sided with repeat offenders and had no regard for victims and police”.
- Counts 23 to 24 highlight a surge in hate crime and anti-Semitism, with Komatireddy calling on the Attorney General’s Office’s hate crime team to take action.
- Counts 25 to 28 involve sex crimes, and Komatireddy believes James failed because he failed to push the Legislature to close loopholes that make it more difficult to bring charges if a victim chooses to drink or take drugs before an alleged sexual assault.
- Sections 29 to 40 deal with fraud and public funds. “Criminal Indictment [for Medicaid fraud] The complaint alleges that the attorney general dropped from more than 100 cases a year before she took office to nine and lost her federal certification.
James’ campaign dismissed the accusations as a campaign stunt.
“Attorney General Letitia James files real lawsuits in real courts every day to protect the rights of New Yorkers and their wallets,” a James campaign spokesperson said.
“As Saritha Komatireddy writes this press release today, the Attorney General announces the arrest and indictment of a Queens pharmacy owner for defrauding Medicaid of $31 million.”
The latest University of Siena poll last month showed James leading Komatreddy by 13 points – 52% to 39% – while the incumbent’s lead was 5 points smaller than in the August survey.
James, 67, who is seeking a third term on Nov. 3, will face off against Komatireddy on a debate stage hosted by Spectrum on Thursday night.
As federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of Brooklyn, New York, Komatireddy, 42, handled some of the most high-profile cases involving international terrorism, cybercrime, drug trafficking, money laundering and public corruption.
James, meanwhile, has attracted national attention for suing Trump and his namesake company for fraud and filing numerous lawsuits against the government.
She also commissioned a sexual misconduct investigation into the former governor. Andrew Cuomo led to the Democrat’s resignation in 2021 despite his denials of wrongdoing.