Alvin Bragg and House Republicans struck a deal Friday that allows the Judiciary Committee to question an ex-prosecutor about the Manhattan district attorney’s case against former President Trump — a day after a federal court ruled to block the deposition.
Under the agreement, the committee will be able to interrogate former Manhattan prosecutor Mark Pomerantz — who penned a tell-all book that detailed Bragg’s investigation into Trump — under oath at a later date than originally scheduled.
Pomerantz will be accompanied by a lawyer from Bragg’s office, an accommodation the committee said it would have allowed even without Friday’s agreement.
The agreement resolves the legal battle between Bragg and the committee that escalated to a federal appeals court in the weeks following Trump’s historic indictment.
Bragg’s office said the deal preserves the district attorney’s “privileges and interests” in his ongoing prosecution.
“Our successful stay of this subpoena blocked the immediate deposition and afforded us the time necessary to coordinate with the House Judiciary Committee on an agreement that protects the District Attorney’s privileges and interests,” Bragg’s office said in a statement.
The committee, led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), had subpoenaed Pomerantz in March to investigate if and how federal funds were used in the investigation into Trump by Bragg’s office.AP
“We are pleased with this resolution, which ensures any questioning of our former employee will take place in the presence of our General Counsel on a reasonable, agreed upon timeframe. We are gratified that the Second Circuit’s ruling provided us with the opportunity to successfully resolve this dispute.”
The committee, led by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), had subpoenaed Pomerantz in March to investigate if and how federal funds were used in the investigation into Trump by Bragg’s office.
Bragg charged Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records shortly after Pomerantz left the office and wrote the bombshell book that included details about another probe into the former president that ultimately did not lead to charges against the former president.
In the aftermath of Trump’s indictment, the committee argued that they had a right to investigate whether ex-presidents are being subjected to “politically motivated state investigations and prosecutions.”
Bragg had viciously pushed back against the committee’s attempts to question ex-assistant district attorney Pomerantz, arguing it was an improper overreach by Congress into a local criminal investigation.
The DA sued Jordan and the committee last week in an attempt to block the subpoena, but was shot down by a judge who claimed: “No one is above the law.”
Mark Pomerantz, a former Manhattan prosecutor, penned a tell-all book that detailed Bragg’s investigation into Trump.AP
Bragg appealed the ruling and was afforded a temporary suspension Thursday, but withdrew the motion as part of his agreement with the committee.
Pomerantz is expected to take the stand May 12.
With Post wires
Source link: https://nypost.com/2023/04/22/alvin-bragg-house-gop-reach-deal-in-probe-over-trump-indictment/