Northeast
Hochul’s office silent when pressed if she sticks by ‘no one is above the law’ belief amid AG’s indictment
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New York Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul offered her support of Empire State Attorney General Letitia James when she was first indicted on charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution, following years of the New York governor celebrating legal challenges originating in her home state and elsewhere against President Donald Trump.
“New Yorkers know @NewYorkStateAGJames for her integrity, her independence, and her relentless fight for justice,” Hochul posted to X following James’ indictment. “What we’re seeing today is nothing less than the weaponization of the Justice Department to punish those who hold the powerful accountable.”
A grand jury in Virginia indicted James Thursday, months after Federal Housing Finance Director Bill Pulte said in a criminal referral to the Department of Justice in April that James allegedly falsified mortgage records to obtain more favorable loans. She faces charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution.
Pulte alleged in his criminal referral that James purchased a home in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2023, but identified it as her primary residence on mortgage documents and a Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac form. James is legally required to live in New York as a statewide elected official in that state.
LEGAL EXPERT CALLS OUT ‘IRONIC’ TWIST AS NY AG WHO PROSECUTED TRUMP FACES FEDERAL BANK FRAUD CHARGES
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac offices in New York will shutter in response to Attorney General Letitia James’ alleged “corrupt” business practices, Fox News Digital learned. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
“No one is above the law. The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the public’s trust,” U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Lindsey Halligan said when James was indicted. “The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served.”
Hochul, as well as other prominent Democrats, have pointed to the indictment as alleged “political weaponization” and political persecution of a Trump foe at the hands of the administration.
James and Trump have long traded barbs, with James campaigning for the attorney general job in 2018 by vowing to pursue legal charges against Trump if elected. Her office ultimately filed nearly 100 legal challenges against the first Trump administration and vowed to continue the legal battles upon his re-election in November 2024.
MAMDANI ASSAILS TRUMP FOR ‘POLITICAL RETRIBUTION’ AGAINST LETITIA JAMES IN SWEEPING DEFENSE OF EMBATTLED AG
Trump accused Democrats of waging lawfare — which is understood as leveraging the courts to gain political advantage — as a last-ditch attempt to prevent him from running for the Oval Office again in the 2024 cycle and securing another federal election win. Trump, for example, was indicted and found guilty in a New York case that accused him of falsifying business records, he was indicted on racketeering charges in Georgia, faced federal criminal cases claiming he mishandled sensitive government documents after his first presidency, and another claiming he attempted to overturn the 2020 election results.
Governor Hochul said she favors “free enterprise” at an event in the Hamptons, New York, in response to socialist Zohran Mamdani’s plan for government-run grocery stores. (Julia Nikhinson, File/The Associated Press)
Trump also faced civil cases, including James accusing Trump and the Trump Organization of inflating asset values in a lawsuit that found Trump and his companies liable.
Fox News Digital took a look back at Hochul’s previous comments on Trump and the legal cases that plagued the president during his first administration through his interim as the 45th and 47th president, and found the governor frequently celebrated cases that conservatives identified as “lawfare.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Hochul’s office for comment on her past remarks on legal cases against Trump as she promotes the narrative that the administration is weaponizng the justice system against political foes, but did not immediately receive a reply. Fox Digital specifically asked if Hochul stands by her previous comments that “no one is above the law,” considering James’ indictment, but did not receive replies.
Trump is the first and only president to be impeached twice by the House, with Hochul remaking during his first impeachment in 2019 — which accused him of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress related to allegedly seeking foreign interference from Ukraine to boost his re-election efforts in 2020 — that no one is above the law.
LETITIA JAMES’ OWN WORDS COME BACK TO HAUNT HER AFTER FEDERAL BANK FRAUD CHARGES FILED
“It’s really quite simple — NO ONE is above the law. Not now, not ever,” she posted to Facebook. “Speaker Pelosi & Democrats in Congress are holding the president accountable because they have a patriotic duty to uphold our Constitution, not play partisan politics.”
Letitia James and Kathy Hochul pose after the rally at 1199 SEIU (Service Employees International Union) Headquarters. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
As Trump stood trial for the civil fraud case launched by James that accused Trump and Trump Organization of financial fraud, Hochul commented that she had “full confidence” that he would be held accountable, while also remarking that he had “temper tantrums” in court.
“Former President Donald Trump is testifying in an unprecedented civil trial brought by our own Attorney General, Tish James. So far from telling the truth as he’s required to do, he’s throwing temper tantrums from the witness stand and verbally attacking judges and courtroom staff,” she said in November 2023. “His conduct has been a disgrace and I have full confidence that Donald Trump will be held accountable for his actions.”
A month later, the Democratic governor appeared to throw her support behind a lawsuit that aimed to prevent Trump’s name from appearing on voting ballots for the 2024 election.
NEW YORK AG LETITIA JAMES’ INDICTMENT SPARKS SHARP PARTISAN DIVIDE
A group of Colorado voters brought forth a lawsuit in 2022 arguing Trump should be deemed ineligible from holding political office under a Civil War-era insurrection clause. The lawsuit argued Trump’s action on Jan. 6, 2021 — when supporters breached the U.S. Capitol — violated a clause in the 14th Amendment that prevents officers of the United States, members of Congress or state legislatures who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the Constitution from holding political office.
“Jan. 6 will live in infamy. Shame on us if we forget that,” Hochul said in December 2023, when the Colorado Supreme Court declared him ineligible to run for president. “Shame on us what happened to this country when a Capitol that I used to proudly walk in as a member of Congress was literally under siege. People died, people were injured, and if he doesn’t take responsibility for that, then the American people ought to hold him accountable. So that’s what’s starting in Colorado.”
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in March 2024 to keep Trump on the ballot.
President Donald Trump looks on during a meeting at the 80th session of the UN’s General Assembly (UNGA) at the United Nations headquarters on September 23, 2025, in New York City. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
After Trump was found liable in James’ civil fraud case in 2023 and ordered to pay $355 million fine, Hochul worked to calm other business leaders’ concerns that they could face similar trials, citing that Trump and “his behavior” set him apart.
“I think that this is really an extraordinary, unusual circumstance that the law-abiding and rule-following New Yorkers who are business people have nothing to worry about, because they’re very different than Donald Trump and his behavior,” Hochul said on the radio show “The Cats Roundtable” in February 2024.
An appeals court threw out the monetary penalty in the case earlier in 2025.
Later that same year, Hochul celebrated that “no one is above the law” when Trump was found guilty in NY v. Trump on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
“Today’s verdict reaffirms that no one is above the law,” Hochul said in a statement in May 2024. “In preparation for a verdict in this trial, I directed my Administration to closely coordinate with local and federal law enforcement and we continue to monitor the situation. We are committed to protecting the safety of all New Yorkers and the integrity of our judicial system.”
As the election came down to the wire in 2024, Hochul slammed Trump as a “fraud” and “philanderer” who lacked New York values, while pointing to the New York v. Trump case.
Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, hold a campaign rally in Milwaukee, Aug, 20, 2024. (Marco Bello/Reuters)
“Donald Trump was born a New Yorker but ended up a fraud, a philanderer, and a felon. He wasn’t raised with the New York values that I know,” Hochul declared during her Democratic National Convention speech in Chicago in 2024. “Trust me, America, if you think you’re tired of Donald Trump, talk to a New Yorker. We’ve had to deal with them for 78 long years, the fraud, the tax dodging, the sham university, the shady charities.”
DOJ OPENS GRAND JURY INVESTIGATION INTO LETITIA JAMES TIED TO TRUMP CIVIL CASE
Trump won the Republican primary in the 2024 election cycle, and swept the seven battleground states on Election Day, defeating then-Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed then-President Joe Biden in the Oval Office.
Hochul and James held a press conference the day after the election, and vowed to battle the Trump agenda while honoring the results of the election.
“I want to be very clear that while we honor the results of this election and will work with anyone who wants to be a partner in achieving the goals of our administration in our state, that does not mean we’ll accept an agenda from Washington that strips away the rights that New Yorkers have long enjoyed,” Hochul said on Nov. 6, 2024.
“We did not expect this result, but we are prepared to respond to this result,” James said during the same press conference. “And my office has been preparing for several months because we’ve been here before,” James said. “We faced this challenge before, and we used the rule of law to fight back. And we are prepared to fight back once again because, as the attorney general of this great state, it is my job to protect and defend the rights of New Yorkers and the rule of law. And I will not shrink from that responsibility.”
Trump slammed the onslaught of court cases against him in recent years, denying wrongdoing and identifying them as attempts from his political foes as tools to prevent him from seeking and winning re-election.
“They’re playing with the courts, as you know, they’ve been playing with the courts for four years,” Trump said in January, just days before he was sworn back into office. “Probably got me more votes because I got the highest number of votes ever gotten by a Republican by far, actually, by a lot. And, you know, we had a great election, so I guess it didn’t work. But even to this day, they’re playing with the courts and they’re friendly judges that like to try and make everybody happy. … It’s called lawfare, it’s called weaponization of justice.”
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A 76-year-old man died on Friday after being shoved down the stairs at the 18th Street subway station in Manhattan, and the police arrested a suspect who had been arrested multiple times in recent months and had been discharged from Bellevue Hospital’s psychiatric ward just hours before.
The victim, Ross Falzone, landed on his head at the bottom of the stairs and suffered a traumatic brain injury, a fractured spine and a fractured rib after a stranger rushed forward and pushed him, the police said.
Mr. Falzone had been walking north on Seventh Avenue toward the subway station in the Chelsea neighborhood on Thursday evening, said Brad Weekes, assistant commissioner of public information for the Police Department. Walking about 30 yards behind him was the stranger, according to surveillance footage from the scene, Mr. Weekes said. As Mr. Falzone reached the station, the man rushed forward and pushed him down the stairs. He was taken to Bellevue where he died shortly before 3 a.m. on Friday.
The death sparked outrage at City Hall. Mayor Zohran Mamdani quickly called for an investigation into how Bellevue handled the discharge of the suspect and suggested that institutional problems at the hospital might have led to the random attack.
“I am horrified by the killing of Ross Falzone and the circumstances that led to it,” Mr. Mamdani said in a news release on Friday, in which he ordered “an immediate investigation on what steps should have been taken to prevent this tragedy.”
Police identified the suspect as Rhamell Burke, 32.
In the three months preceding the attack, Mr. Burke was arrested four times, Mr. Weekes said, including an arrest on Feb. 2 in connection with an assault on a Port Authority police officer.
Mr. Burke’s most recent interaction with the police began at around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, when he approached a group of N.Y.P.D. officers outside the 17th Precinct station house on East 51st Street, Mr. Weekes said. He grabbed a stick from a pile of garbage on the street and approached the officers, who told him to drop the stick. When he did, officers placed Mr. Burke in a police vehicle and drove him to Bellevue, where he was admitted to the emergency room at around 3:40 p.m., Mr. Weekes said. Mr. Burke was taken to the hospital’s Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program for evaluation and treatment, Mr. Weekes said, and was released from the hospital one hour later.
He was just a mile and a half from the hospital when he encountered Mr. Falzone at around 9:30 p.m. Thursday.
On Friday afternoon, police officers found Mr. Burke in Penn Station, where they arrested him. He was in custody on Friday evening. It was unclear Friday if Mr. Burke had a lawyer.
The mayor said he had requested help from the New York State Department of Health, which will investigate the decision to release Mr. Burke from Bellevue and conduct a review of similar cases at the hospital. The state agency also will investigate psychiatric evaluation and discharge procedures across NYC Health and Hospitals, the city’s public hospital system, according to the news release.
Mr. Falzone was a retired high school teacher who lived alone for many years in an apartment building on the Upper West Side. His friends were in shock on Friday about his death. They shared memories of an affable but private man who rarely spoke about his family or personal life.
Mr. Falzone had been recovering from a recent surgery and seemed more mobile and happy, said Marc Stager, 78, Mr. Falzone’s next-door neighbor on a tree-lined block of West 85th Street. He was known as a cheerful “yapper,” said Briel Waxman, a neighbor. He was the kind of New Yorker who enjoyed chatting with neighbors about historical details of his building and seeing performances at Lincoln Center with friends.
“He was always out and about,” said Ms. Waxman, 35, who often returned to her apartment at midnight or 1 a.m. to find Mr. Falzone arriving home at the same time. “I was like, ‘I don’t know if I’m proud of you or embarrassed of myself,’” she remembered telling him.
Mr. Falzone had wide taste in music — opera, classical, jazz, pop — and neighbors could tell he was home when they heard notes escaping from under his apartment door, Mr. Stager said.
He was “a helpless old guy,” said Mr. Stager, who added that he was “disappointed and shocked, frankly, that somebody could do such a thing” as shove such a defenseless person down the stairs.
When Ms. Waxman moved into the building five years ago, Mr. Falzone was among the first people to welcome her, she said. He once brought a package to her door that had been delivered to the wrong unit and shared that what is now a blank wall in her apartment had once been a fireplace.
Ms. Waxman sat in her living room on Friday and cried as she talked, dabbing her eyes with a tissue. She remembered Mr. Falzone as “just overall, nice, talkative, genuine human.”
Boston, MA
What we know about wrong-way driver killed in head-on collision with state trooper in Lynnfield – The Boston Globe
Court records show that Marrero was the father of three children, the oldest of whom is 17. The youngest two children, twins, are 13 years old; Marrero’s death came days before their 14th birthday.
Records in Middlesex Probate and Family Court also suggest that Marrero faced financial difficulties and personal troubles, stemming in part from a work injury that family members said caused a bout of depression and deteriorating behavior in his personal life.
For nearly a decade, Marrero worked at Dewberry, a Boston engineering consulting firm, court records show, obtaining a job as an architectural design apprentice in 2005. He left the company in 2014, according to a company spokesperson.
Throughout that time, he doubled as a bartender on the side, working at Mexican restaurants in Boston and Waltham, court records show.
A knee injury ended Marrero’s career at Dewberry, court records show, and he left the company shortly thereafter.
That injury, according to court documents, was the catalyst for what his wife described as a “major depressive episode,” which she said contributed to the strain in their marriage. The couple, who had been married for more than 20 years, separated in 2022.
Records also show that Marrero struggled with debts to family members and credit card companies. During his divorce proceedings, it was unclear how much money he was taking home in income.
Marrero briefly owned and operated a contracting business, 109 Construction, but the corporation was administratively dissolved in 2024, according to state filings.
Marrero had lived in US since at least 2001, holding legal status. He became a naturalized citizen in March 2021, court records show.
Social media posts suggest he was active in the tight-knit Venezuelan community in Massachusetts. Photos show him cheering on Venezuela at a World Baseball Classic watch party in Brighton earlier this year.
Court records appear to show Marrero’s interest in art and music, owning a Venezuelan guitar, conga drums, and several Venezuelan paintings, as well as homemade winemaking setup.
Marrero’s family could not be reached for comment. A close friend reached by the Globe declined to comment.
Trainor had just completed his shift at about 2 a.m. on Wednesday and was driving home when he responded to a report for a Jeep traveling south in the northbound lanes of Route 1, near the Lynnfield overpass.
Raised in Salem, Trainor began his public safety career as an Essex County correction officer before graduating from the State Police academy in 2023, State Police Colonel Geoffrey Noble said.
Trainor’s fiancée, Jessica D. Ostrowski, of Georgetown, posted an emotional message to social media Thursday, describing the late trooper as “my absolute best friend.”
“I am beyond proud for the amount of love you have been given by those who loved and cared about you,” she wrote.
Travis Andersen and Jeremiah Manion of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Material from previous Globe coverage was used.
Camilo Fonseca can be reached at camilo.fonseca@globe.com. Follow him on X @fonseca_esq and on Instagram @camilo_fonseca.reports.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have largely finished filling their offseason roster, adding 10 draft picks, six undrafted free agents, and a few veteran reinforcements to fill out the 90-man squad. Now Omar Khan’s attention shifts from acquiring talent to sorting through it starting this weekend with rookie minicamp. How many members of the Steelers’ 2026 draft class will survive the final cuts?
This first iteration is the time for bold predictions when we have very little information to work with. You’ll notice a couple surprises in mine. Here’s an early prediction of Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster.
Offense – 25
Quarterbacks (3) – Aaron Rodgers, Will Howard, Drew Allar
Analysis: Rodgers hasn’t signed, but the assumption has been all along that he eventually will. If he does, Mason Rudolph is as good at gone. I suppose they could stash him on the practice squad, if he’s agreeable, to have at least one veteran with starting experience. Allar is a lock, and it would be a shock if the Steelers move on from Howard after they gassed him up all offseason.
Running Backs (4) – Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Travis Homer, Riley Nowakowski (FB)
Analysis: Kaleb Johnson was drafted for Arthur Smith’s wide-zone scheme, and Smith is gone. Where will his opportunity come with Dowdle and Warren both on the roster through 2027? Johnson also serves no purpose on special teams. It’s hard to move on from a third-round pick so soon, but how do you keep him on the roster while being mindful of special teams? Homer is too important in that area as a four-unit player who can serve as a personal protector on the punt unit.
Wide Receivers (6) – DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard, Ben Skowronek, Kaden Wetjen, Eli Heidenreich
Analysis: Going out on a limb here with another surprise cut of former third-round pick Roman Wilson. He was lapped on the depth chart by Marquez Valdes-Scantling late last season and Aaron Rodgers clearly didn’t trust Wilson. If Rodgers is back, Wilson is due for another year of not getting a helmet on game day. He provides nothing on special teams, so it’s hard to justify his spot. Heidenreich makes it as the team’s final seventh-round pick because he can play RB and WR (he’s listed as both on its official roster) and a whole lot of special teams. Wetjen and Heidenreich give them multiple slot options to experiment with.
Tight Ends (3) – Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Jaheim Bell
Analysis: Freiermuth and Washington are locks, but the third tight end should be one of the more interesting spots on the roster this year. The team lists Nowakowski as a fullback, though he can play both. Jaheim Bell is another versatile option who can play TE, fullback, and H-back. McCarthy’s favorite word seems to be versatility, so Bell makes sense here.
Offensive Tackles (3) – Troy Fautanu, Max Iheanachor, Dylan Cook
Analysis: Broderick Jones may contribute in 2026, but I am predicting him to start the season on the PUP list after reports of a setback with his neck injury. Fautanu, Iheanachor, and Cook are no-brainers, but will the Steelers keep a fourth pure tackle? Spencer Anderson, Gennings Dunker, and maybe even Steven Jones can play the position in a pinch, so I’ll stick with three. This would presumably go back to four if/when Jones is healthy.
Interior Offensive Linemen (6) – Zach Frazier, Mason McCormick, Gennings Dunker, Brock Hoffman, Spencer Anderson, Ryan McCollum
Analysis: Frazier, McCormick, and Dunker are set in stone. Anderson and Hoffman provide experience and familiarity with a chance to win the Week 1 starting LG job. McCollum has been solid as Frazier’s backup when needed.
Defense – 25
Defensive Ends (5) – Cameron Heyward, Derrick Harmon, Yahya Black, Esezi Otomewo, Kevin Jobity Jr.
Analysis: I have Rubio as the only draft pick not to make the 53-man roster. Otomewo was solid in limited action and has experience with the rest of the group. The last spot comes down to Rubio, Jobity, and Logan Lee. Jobity offers a little more pass-rush upside and could flash enough in camp to win a spot at the back of the depth chart.
Nose Tackles (2) – Keeanu Benton, Sebastian Joseph-Day
Analysis: Both are virtual locks and should play a large number of snaps in this defense.
Outside Linebackers (4) – T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig, Jack Sawyer
Analysis: Nothing should change here from last year. It’s one of the deepest and most talented position groups on the entire roster.
Inside Linebackers (5) – Patrick Queen, Payton Wilson, Cole Holcomb, Carson Bruener, Brandon George
Analysis: Let’s include a rookie minicamp tryout player. One or two usually make the 90-man roster, and it’s not unheard of for them to also make the initial 53. George is one of the most athletic linebackers to come out of the draft in a long time. And unlike most athletic linebackers, you don’t have to sacrifice size with him standing 6032 and weighing 246 pounds. He went undrafted and was impressing in Kansas City last year before an injury derailed his rookie season. Malik Harrison was signed to be a force in the run game, but he didn’t do that very well last year. To me, he’s expendable. Bruener is a core special teamer and should be considered darn near a lock for the initial 53-man roster because of it.
Cornerbacks (5) – Joey Porter Jr., Jamel Dean, Brandin Echols, Daylen Everette, Asante Samuel Jr.
Analysis: With the addition of third-round rookie Daylen Everette, fringe guys like Cory Trice Jr. and Donte Kent should have a hard time making the roster given their extensive injury histories.
Safeties (4) – Jalen Ramsey, DeShon Elliott, Jaquan Brisker, Robert Spears-Jennings
Analysis: The top three should be considered locks, which leaves an intriguing battle between Spears-Jennings and Sebastian Castro. The upside on defense is higher for the rookie, and I think he offers enough on special teams to edge out Castro, especially with other special teams guys like Homer, Bruener, Skowronek, and Sawyer already on the roster.
Special Teams – 3
Kicker (1) – Chris Boswell
Analysis: Boswell should soon sign an extension that makes him the league’s most expensive kicker. And it’s well-deserved. This one is obvious.
Punter (1) – Cameron Johnston
Analysis: Pittsburgh’s rookie minicamp roster includes three punters, so this isn’t a shoo-in. But Johnston is the clear favorite if he can stay healthy after back-to-back injury-plagued seasons at 34 years old.
Long Snapper (1) – Christian Kuntz
Analysis: Pittsburgh has always given Kuntz competition, and this year is no different. But he is under contract through 2026 and should keep his job for at least one more season.
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