The Justice Department on Friday subpoenaed New York Attorney General Letitia James as part of an investigation and burgeoning grand jury inquiry into whether her office violated the rights of President Donald Trump during her prosecution of his high-profile civil fraud case, according to multiple reports.

The subpoenas, issued by the U.S. attorney’s office in Albany, also seek records related to James’s long-running enforcement action against the National Rifle Association, according to reports from Fox News Digital and the New York Times. The Washington Examiner has not independently confirmed the subpoenas but has contacted the DOJ, the Northern District of New York, and James’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, for comment.

The investigation is reportedly focused on whether James or her office used law enforcement authority to deprive people of federally protected rights, a violation of a civil rights statute typically used in police misconduct cases.

James, a Democrat first elected in 2018, sued Trump in 2022 for allegedly inflating the value of his assets to secure favorable financial terms. A New York judge ordered him to pay $454 million in penalties, a figure now exceeding $500 million with interest. Trump has appealed the ruling.

Lowell, who also represents Hunter Biden, denounced the reported subpoenas as a political move by the Trump administration.

“Weaponizing the Department of Justice to try to punish an elected official for doing her job is an attack on the rule of law and a dangerous escalation by this administration,” Lowell said Friday. “If prosecutors carry out this improper tactic and are genuinely interested in the truth, we are ready and waiting with facts and the law.”

A spokesman for James, Geoff Burgan, defended the office’s record.

“We stand strongly behind our successful litigation against the Trump Organization and the National Rifle Association, and we will continue to stand up for New Yorkers’ rights,” he said.

Republicans have long accused James of “weaponizing” her office for the specific intent of targeting Trump, pointing to campaign statements in which James said she would pursue every avenue to investigate Trump and his finances, before ultimately doing so with her 2022 civil case against him.

Trump ally Rep. Elis Stefanik (R-NY) relished in the DOJ signing off on beginning grand jury proceedings against James, saying Friday, “I’ve led the charge against James’s weaponization and illegal abuse of her office to target President Trump and other political opponents.”

“Last year, I filed a bar complaint with the New York State Committee on Professional Standards, detailing how [James] violated ethical rules during her biased investigation and prosecution of Trump,” Stefanik said, adding she recently “exposed” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) insertion of language into the state budget that would cover her personal legal expenses using taxpayer funding.

A DOJ spokesperson declined to comment. U.S. Attorney John Sarcone III, who leads the Albany-based office overseeing the inquiry, has not responded to requests for comment.

The Trump and NRA-related subpoenas appear unrelated to a separate DOJ inquiry into James’s personal real estate dealings, which FBI Director Kash Patel publicly acknowledged earlier this year. However, sources confirmed to Fox News host Lauren Ingraham that Attorney General Pam Bondi authorized a special prosecutor, Ed Martin, to investigate allegations of mortgage fraud involving James and Schiff.

A grand jury will convene in Virginia to investigate whether she falsified records to secure favorable loan terms on her property in the state. For Schiff, a grand jury will convene in Maryland to determine whether the California senator committed mortgage fraud concerning a 2011 affidavit that certified his Montgomery County property as his primary residence.

A DOJ spokesperson declined to comment. U.S. Attorney John Sarcone III, who leads the Albany-based office overseeing the inquiry, has not responded to requests for comment.

The investigation appears unrelated to a separate DOJ inquiry into James’s personal real estate dealings, which FBI Director Kash Patel publicly acknowledged earlier this year.

FBI INVESTIGATING LETITIA JAMES OVER ALLEGED MORTGAGE FRAUD

The grand jury activity comes amid rising tensions between James and Trump, who has frequently attacked her in speeches and social media posts. His allies have urged the DOJ to pursue legal action against Democratic prosecutors who they say targeted him unfairly.

The civil rights statute in question criminalizes any official act that deprives a person of constitutionally protected rights under “color of law,” regardless of discriminatory motive. Though most often used in cases of police abuse or prison misconduct, the law does not limit enforcement to those contexts.