(CNN) The Trumps moved late Monday to quash subpoenas from the New York attorney general's office to two of former President Donald Trump's children seeking their testimony as part of its civil investigation into whether the Trump Organization manipulated the values of its properties. Witnesses called before a New York state grand jury are given transactional immunity for their testimony and can't be prosecuted unless they lie under oath. James, they argued, is trying to get around those rights by seeking the testimony in a civil case, which could then be used by criminal prosecutors. If they don't testify, in a civil case a jury can hold that against defendants or draw an adverse inference. By attempting to play both sides, Ms James is in a position to cherry pick her investigatory methods -- civil or criminal -- in a calculated manner to, for example, leverage a Fifth Amendment assertion and obtain an adverse inference" in the civil investigation, they wrote, adding that absent a criminal investigation, the Trumps "might well be inclined to testify."

Source: CNN January 03, 2022 22:25 UTC