A collision between a double-decker bus and a city bus in Manhattan on Thursday left dozens injured and at least 18 people requiring hospitalization for non-life-threatening injuries, according to the New York City Fire Department.

First responders received notice of the crash on the borough’s east side shortly after 7 p.m. Thursday, said FDNY Deputy Chief Kevin Murphy.

“The first two units arrived to find two buses involved in what appeared to be a serious accident, complicated by the fact that one of them was a double-decker bus,” Murphy said at a news conference at the scene.

Ropes and ladders were used to assist passengers with getting off the buses, officials said.

“Any time you have two buses involved you have a significant number of patients that likely need to be treated,” Murphy said. “So seeing that quantity of people right away, I think the units did a very good job getting them off the bus quickly and taken to the appropriate resources.”

Eighteen patients were transported to area hospitals but none have life-threatening injuries, the fire department said.

“Many injuries are just cuts, bruises, scrapes, some suspected fractures. Some head and neck injuries as well,” said EMS Deputy Chief Paul Hopper. “We’re all quite fortunate it was not much worse.”

Another 63 people were needing assessment from a fire department doctor, Hopper said, adding, “We expect that they will refuse medical attention and be seen by our doctor who is on the scene and on the bus evaluating patients.”

It is not yet clear what caused the crash, fire officials say.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said there was a crash at 7:17 p.m. on bus route X27 and referred CNN to the fire department for further details. Police referred CNN to the fire department when asked for comment.

Brattleboro police Chief Norma Hardy remembers Sept. 11, 2001, like it was yesterday. She was a Port Authority officer at the time, living in Brooklyn. She wasn’t scheduled to work that morning, but like everyone, plans changed, fast.“You know, once we realized there was it wasn't an accident, once the second plane had hit... We were mobilized. And we started coming into Manhattan,” Hardy said.As she arrived in lower Manhattan, the towers were already rubble.“I really just came out into a bunch of chaos, and people running around and really horrible scenes,” she said.With her police shield around her neck, Hardy walked block by block, down streets she worked to protect for years.“I kind of think I went into shock at that point, witnessing what I was seeing,” she said.Moments later, a stranger snapped her back to the reality at hand. Hardy and fellow first responders started conducting rescue missions at ground zero. The most prominent sound was firefighters’ man down alarms.“It felt like we were in like a tunnel,” Hardy said. “Because it was like you could hear every sound because you were trying to hear people screaming for help. And you kept trying to hear and we walked, and people were digging with their hands, and they were picking up blocks with their hands. They were fires everywhere.”For days on end, the searching went on, the smoke and debris endless.“Your mind plays a trick on you,” Hardy said. “So, you think that you can hear people? And you really didn't. It was just that we wanted to find people so badly. That's what we thought we were hearing.”The Port Authority Police Department lost 37 officers on just that day. One of Hardy’s best friends, 50-year-old John Dennis Levi, was one of them. They continue to lose officers years later due to illnesses contracted from ground zero.“I have quite a few friends that are fighting different cancers,” Hardy said.While some are still fighting their own 9/11 battles, some of Hardy's young officers can't comprehend how our nation changed that sunny day.“I spoke to some of my officers, and they were little kids when this happened,” she said.For Hardy, the story never changes. Her memories serve as a reminder that those who answered the call of duty on that fateful day will always be remembered.“If you don't have people left who can tell you firsthand accounts of it, I'm afraid that it will get lost in history,” she said.

NEW YORK —

Former President Donald Trump's claims that absolute presidential immunity and free speech rights shield him from the defamation claims of a New York columnist were rejected Thursday by a federal judge.

The writer, E. Jean Carroll, can continue to press claims that Trump owes her at least $10 million in damages for comments he made before and after she won a $5 million sexual abuse and defamation verdict against him last month, Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said in a written opinion.

Trump tried to dismiss the lawsuit on grounds that he is entitled to absolute presidential immunity, his statements were not defamatory and that his statements were opinion protected by free speech rights.

Kaplan said Trump surrendered absolute presidential immunity as a defense by failing to assert it years ago when the lawsuit was filed. The lawsuit was delayed until recently as appeals courts considered legal issues surrounding it.

Trump countersued Carroll this week, claiming that she has libeled him by continuing to insist that he raped her even after a jury found otherwise.

After a jury returned its verdict last month in Manhattan federal court, Trump made comments on a CNN town hall that prompted Carroll to assert new defamation claims in a 2020 defamation lawsuit.

The jury award resulted from a sexual abuse and defamation lawsuit filed last November after New York state temporarily enacted a law allowing sexual assault victims to sue for damages resulting from attacks that occurred even decades earlier.

Trump's claims in the CNN broadcast mirrored statements he made while president in 2019 when Carroll published a memoir in which she claimed Trump raped her in the dressing room of a luxury midtown Manhattan department store in spring 1996.

Within hours of excerpts from the book being published in a magazine, Trump denied a rape occurred or that he ever knew Carroll.

"Mr. Trump did not merely deny Ms. Carroll's accusation of sexual assault," Kaplan wrote. "Instead, he accused Ms. Carroll of lying about him sexually assaulting her in order to increase sales of her book, gain publicity, and/or carry out a political agenda."

The judge said the main purpose of presidential immunity was to avoid diverting the president from public duties, but it was not a "get-out-of-damages-liability-free card that permits the president to say or do anything he or she desires even if that conduct is disconnected entirely from an official function."

Kaplan said he took into consideration that Carroll is now 79 years old and has pursued claims against Trump for 3 1/2 years.

"There is no basis to risk prolonging the resolution of this litigation further by permitting Mr. Trump to raise his absolute immunity defense now at the eleventh hour when he could have done so years ago," he said.

In rejecting claims that Carroll's lawsuit was about protected speech, Kaplan explained how libel and slander are handled in the courts and why Trump's statements could be construed to fit the legal definition for defamation, including that a jury had already found it so.

Trump's lawyers did not immediately comment.

Attorney Robbie Kaplan, who represents Carroll and is unrelated to the judge, said in a statement that the judge's ruling "confirms that once again, Donald Trump's supposed defenses to E. Jean Carroll's defamation claims don't work."

She added: "Today's decision removes one more impediment to the January 15 trial on E Jean's defamation damages in this case."

The Associated Press typically does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly, as Carroll has done.

CINCINNATI — As Reds fans enjoyed Opening Day at the Great American Ballpark, many were unaware history had been made.

Former President Donald Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury hours before the final pitch was thrown, and many who learned while leaving the ballpark were stunned by the sudden turn of events in a months-long investigation.

"I'm a Trump supporter," said John Booth.

Booth said he views Trump as innocent until proven guilty, and hoped the former president — now the only in U.S. history to face criminal charges — would beat the charges and take office again.

"The economy is where it's at right now because of the current administration," Booth said, "and I would say that the predecessor would be better."

Others saw the indictment as the tip of a very large legal iceberg as Trump also faces an investigation in Georgia related to pressuring officials to change the results of the 2020 election and another into his handling of classified documents after leaving office.

What does Donald Trump's indictment mean for his presidential run?

"As a gay woman, this is exciting news," said Elizabeth Witte. "I think that with everything that's been happening in the world, we need something. He needs to be held accountable for not just this but all his actions."

Many landed in the middle ground in their opinions of Trump's new indictment.

Michaela Pearson said she had faith in the legal system.

"My initial thought is innocent until proven guilty," she said. "Of course, there's two sides to every story."

Jack Ferguson said he had faith in the spirit of the country.

"I love America, and I'm proud to be an American," he said. "So, whatever the case is, I just want everyone to be together and be united. That's what I care about. I could care less about the different political stuff."

WCPO reached out to both Republican and Democratic leadership in Hamilton County. Democratic Party Chair Gwen McFarlin said she had no comment until further details emerged about the charges facing Trump. Republican Chair Russell Mock had the same thing to say, but added he was disappointed with what was happening in New York.

"Weaponizing the judicial system for political purposes is dangerous at this point," he said.

Many local politicians refrained from making statements on the indictment. Senator J.D. Vance tweeted that it was "despicable" that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg thinks Donald Trump should "go to jail for a fake misdemeanor" while a man who described as a "lunatic" who "hurled racial slurs" at a family on a New York subway should "walk free."

Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky also tweeted about Bragg. The former president said the indictment is "political persecution and election interference at the highest level in history."

The Associated Press reported the Manhattan District Attorney's office is coordinating the surrender and arraignment process with Trump lawyers. Exactly when those steps may take place is still not currently known.

READ MORE
What does Donald Trump's indictment mean for his presidential run?
Lawmakers react after news of Trump indictment
What happens now that Donald Trump has been indicted?

CNN —

One spring morning last year, Vilma Kari was strolling through midtown Manhattan on her way to church when she was suddenly attacked by a stranger.

"You don't belong here, you Asian," he said, cursing and beating her so violently that Vilma, then 65, was left with serious pelvic injuries.

Later, Vilma realized that closed-circuit video of those nightmarish moments had gone viral online, placing her at the center of a media storm over anti-Asian attacks during the pandemic.

"Every day I was constantly reminded of what had happened to me," said Vilma, who immigrated from the Philippines as a student in her 20s.

Vilma and her daughter Elizabeth are among thousands of families across the United States grappling with a surge in anti-Asian violence fueled by misinformation linking the virus with Asian countries or people.

The spike in hate crimes was particularly pronounced in New York, where more than 14% of the population is Asian or Pacific Islander, according to official data.

National media attention subsided toward the end of 2021, but this January has brought more horrifying news: the death of a 62-year-old Asian man from injuries inflicted in an attack in New York last April, and the alleged murder of Michelle Go, who was pushed into the path of a Times Square subway train.

This Sunday community members and activists are holding rallies across six major cities to honor victims of anti-Asian racism, including 84-year-old Thai American Vicha Ratanapakdee who died after an attack last January.

Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) organizations say America hasn't become any safer for the community in the past year — and they worry that the underlying problems that led to people being targeted still haven't been addressed.

Video sparks international outrage

Chilling video of Vilma's attack went viral — and not just because of the violence.

Filmed from what appears to be a security camera inside a Midtown apartment complex, a man can be seen kicking Vilma as she collapses on the pavement outside.

At the same time, two doormen inside the building watch the incident, with one closing the building's glass doors as it happens. They wait a minute for the perpetrator to leave before going outside.

During that time, two other people come and go from the building, appearing to walk past Vilma as she lies motionless on the street.

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) later said no one called 911 to report the incident and that patrol officers driving by had come upon Vilma after the assault.

The two doormen have since been fired, according to the building owners.

Vilma's daughter Elizabeth rushed to a hospital to be with her mother. Later that night, she received a text from a friend with a link to a video and a question: "Is this your mom?"

"At first I couldn't imagine that that was her," Elizabeth said. "The actual brutality of the incident was just eye-opening."

In the weeks afterward, news channels replayed the video and reporters gathered outside their home. Their phones rang incessantly and messages flooded in from concerned friends, family and sympathetic strangers.

Elizabeth did her best to shield Vilma from the attention -- but sometimes it felt inescapable. "That was every moment of what I was dealing with," Elizabeth said.

Among the surge of strangers reaching out were prominent activists and members of the AAPI community, as well as well-wishers around the world. Some said Vilma reminded them of their own parents; others offered to send Filipino snacks and care packages.

The messages "brought me great comfort during the height of my recovery," Vilma said. "I would read the beautiful, heartfelt notes and messages that I had received ... and was so moved that strangers from all over the world would take time out of their day to think about me."

A target on their backs

Among the messages Vilma received were many personal stories from others in the AAPI community who had also faced discrimination, harassment or assault.

A nationwide survey of more than 1,000 AAPI respondents from September to October found that roughly one in five had experienced a hate incident in the past 12 months, according to Stop Hate AAPI, a center that tracks reports of racism and discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

In New York City, reports of hate crimes to police have surged since 2019 — rising to 28 in 2020, then 131 last year.

And experts say the real number is likely much higher, as many attacks aren't classified as hate crimes due to lack of evidence that identity was the motivating factor. Language barriers and long-standing distrust of law enforcement also contribute to underreporting.

This rise in attacks has led to increased anxiety and mistrust in the community — and older AAPI people in particular are more afraid to go out for fear of being targeted, survivors and experts told CNN.

"You're still going to see the senior citizen who may still be walking around Chinatown late at night, but I think the majority are very cautious," said Shirley Ng, a community organizer with civil rights group the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Some businesses in New York's Chinatown area even started closing earlier last year, so their employees can get home safely before nightfall, she added.

Minerva Chin, 68, never used to think twice before going out for evening walks or to run errands at night. But one day last July, Chin, a Chinese American teacher and community activist, was punched by a stranger in the street while walking through a part of Chinatown she knows well. She passed out and suffered a mild concussion; her attacker disappeared into the crowd and was never caught.

Though she had followed the news about the rise in racism, after her attack, it "hit that, 'Oh my God, all this anti-Asian hate isn't going away' — that it came to my neighborhood," said Chin.

She's now cautious about being out past 10 p.m., feels more uneasy in crowds and sometimes avoids narrow sidewalks so nobody gets too close to her.

"I think in general, people became more vigilant," she said. "You know, don't walk by yourself or go out late ... It's the reality sinking in that this is real, we all have to be cautious, we escort each other home or give each other a ride."

Tommy Lau knows this feeling well. Having worked as a bus driver for over a decade, he has encountered countless aggressive passengers slinging racial slurs.

But the frequency and intensity of racist vitriol has gotten worse since the pandemic, said Lau, who is Chinese American.

"When COVID-19 hit, everybody went crazy," the 63-year-old said in a New York twang. "When Donald Trump said the Asian flu was caused by China, and called it 'kung flu,' that stirred people up."

On March 23, a week before Vilma's attack, he witnessed a man trying to mug an elderly Asian couple. When Lau tried to intervene, the man punched him in the face and used a racial slur. "Then he spat at me," Lau said.

Lau suffered a concussion and had to take half a year of unpaid leave to recover, regularly attending physical rehabilitation for months. Sometimes, he felt so dizzy he couldn't stand.

Making matters worse, he said, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) didn't pay him any workers' compensation because the confrontation had happened during Lau's lunch break, which is not classified as working hours.

The matter is still under litigation, Lau said. CNN has repeatedly reached out to the MTA for comment.

Lau returned to the job in October after recovering physically and spoke to CNN at the Brooklyn bus depot one November evening. As the sun set, he leaned against a parked bus on the street, pausing occasionally to greet other bus operators passing by.

He received praise after the attack, including a plaque from the NYPD 62nd precinct in recognition of his stopping the mugging, he said. But it didn't shake the discomfort that lingers when he gets behind the wheel.

"I can't face people now — and this is a people job," he said. "Being a bus operator, you face people constantly. Now, I see them, I just — I don't hate them, but I don't like to face them no more. It's psychological."

Push for action

Before the attack, Vilma lived by herself in Chicago, and was planning to travel to her native Philippines to visit her siblings. Now, she is staying in New York with her only child Elizabeth, who took two months off work to care for her mother full-time.

For both of them, the video that caused so much pain ended up becoming a catalyst for healing. The flood of online messages inspired Elizabeth to launch an online platform called AAP(I Belong), where she shares many of the stories she receives.

Some members of the AAPI community have taken a more direct approach, conducting volunteer patrols throughout Chinatown, organizing self-defense classes, or running street campaigns encouraging people to report hate crimes so authorities have an accurate idea of how widespread the problem is.

New York leaders pledged support last year, with state lawmakers creating a $10 million fund in April to combat discrimination. So far, $3.5 million has been distributed to 11 community organizations; the rest of the promised funds are "under review and will be awarded as quickly as possible," the New York Department of State said in a statement to CNN.

The city mayor provided another $3 million in May to fight hate crime, distributed among six organizations representing different ethnic and activist groups.

The NYPD also set up an Asian Hate Crimes Task Force, held a number of community forums, and increased undercover patrols in areas with high Asian populations like Chinatown.

But despite the community's efforts, the underlying racial hatred and systemic problems that led to the attacks haven't been substantially addressed, say activists and survivors. Several told CNN they believed violent perpetrators should be denied bail or held for longer after arrest and that authorities need to offer more support to people who may be suffering from mental disorders.

They also pointed to the problem of underreporting and the NYPD's narrow definition of hate crimes, which prevent authorities from measuring the true scale of the problem.

Under the NYPD's rules, unless there is clear evidence of motive — for instance, an attacker yelling a racial or discriminatory slur — many attacks aren't classified as hate crimes, and convicted perpetrators may be given a lesser sentence depending on the charge.

When Chin was punched in Chinatown, "nothing was said ... so they don't classify it as a hate crime," she said.

Vilma was one of the few cases that saw her alleged attacker charged with hate crimes, including two counts of second-degree assault and one count of first-degree attempted assault. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

But even with her attacker arrested, Vilma is still struggling to move on.

Vilma said she would love to visit her family in the Philippines, many of whom she hasn't seen for years — but she can't leave the country while legal proceedings continue and her recovery isn't complete.

Though she is now physically strong enough to go out for occasional walks or up to her rooftop, she's afraid to leave the house without a friend or family member. She isn't ready yet to return to the area where she was attacked, she said.

"Fear lingers most of the time," she added. "I don't feel comfortable walking outside alone."

OLATHE, Kan. —

First Lt. Dustin Fergen had been deployed for almost 11 months overseas. He hadn't seen his family since Thanksgiving last year.

That changed Wednesday.

During an assembly at Heatherstone Elementary School in Olathe, Kansas, he surprised his two daughters. They both, fourth grader Joanna Fergen and first grader Angelica Fergen, didn’t see it coming.

"I was half expecting them to come running up to me, but it took a little coaxing. It was everything I could ask for," Fergen said.

Once the shock wore off, it was all smiles for the reunited family.

"But it all worked out and it was worth every second of the wait and the little lies we had to tell," Kim Fergen, the lieutenant's wife, said.

This was Fergen's first deployment. He serves as an intelligence officer in the 130th field artillery unit.

He’s now stationed a lot closer to home in Manhattan, Kansas.

The family says they have a lot of vacations planned to make up for lost time.

CINCINNATI — While most people watched what unfolded on 9/11 from their homes or places of work, U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, was sitting in the White House.

"I will never forget what happened that day," Portman said.

Portman, then a U.S. Representative, said he has two distinct memories.

The first was a meeting in the White House.

"We looked up the TV screen. The second plane hit," Portman said. "At that point, we knew this was war. I went to get my car to get back to the Capitol and saw the black smoke coming up in the Pentagon. And Jane was with me. My wife was with me."

The couple decided Portman would stay in Washington, D.C., but his wife needed to get back to Cincinnati as fast as possible to be with their young children. That brought him to his second memory.

"She got the last rental car out of Washington, Enterprise rental car," he said. "We drove out to the suburbs to get it. She took off for home to be with the kids. And while she was driving to Pennsylvania, Ohio Task Force One, which is an urban search-and-rescue team right here in Southwestern Ohio — Dayton, Cincinnati — were streaming down the highway, rushing to the danger. I was so proud. She told me that these Ohio guys, many who I know, were heading to New York."

Twenty years later, that memory is still an emotional one for the senator.

Ohio Task Force One Remembers . . .

The day of the attack, and those that followed, are also emotional times for seven local members of the 12-member Ohio Task Force One crew.

"We got deployed at like noon on that day," Ed Thomas said. "We were in an information blackout."

Thomas, along with Grant Light, Mike Lotz, David Pickering, Mike Cayse, WCPO photographer Michael Benedic and Greg Morris spent more than two weeks at Ground Zero in Manhattan to try to rescue survivors.

The seven had never sat down together and talked about their time in New York before now.

"The American public knew more about what was going on than we did," Mike Cayse said of going into New York immediately after the attack on the Twin Towers.

Grant Light added, "We were on the pile less than 24 hours after the first plane hit the tower."

Mike Lotz recalled his feelings as he went to work going through the towers' rubble, hoping to save lives.

"I don't think it was fear as much as apprehension on, 'I hope we do this right,' you know?" Lotz said.

David Pickering said he and his crew had no idea what the devastation they were entering looked like before arrival.

"All the pictures and images that you saw on the TV, we didn't get to see; we were traveling," Pickering said. "So we really had no insight as to how big...the scope of the operation that we were about to undertake."

Benedic said, looking back, what others did see on TV could not fully convey the scope of the destruction onsite.

"I don't think television ever did it justice, that that pile was so huge," the news photographer said.

Morris added, "We had a job. But I think, to some extent, we still felt helpless, too. I mean, you've got this literal mountain of rubble, and there is only so much you can do so quickly."

"It was just overwhelming," Cayse said. "You had to take a moment just to let it catch you. Everything was turned to powder."

Lotz recalled no chairs or desks or recognizable items in the debris when he arrived at Ground Zero.

And as the Ohio Task Force One crew began to dig into that rubble . . .

"(It) was very disheartening to know that we were not having good luck, and nobody was having good luck on the pile finding survivors," Cayse said.

But, he continued, "there was always that chance, right? That's why you were there...for that chance, and maybe, you know, you'll pull off that miracle where you'll, you know, move this piece or cut into this wall, and there'll be somebody on the other side," Lotz added.

Thomas recalled the one thing that kept him going, as the days of combing through rubble went on, was hope.

"It wears on you, but you keep doing your job with the hope that, you know, today may be the day — when you knew, as time went on, the chances of that was diminished," he said.

Pickering said memories stay with him to this day of the people most directly affected by the attack while he was there.

"We would go down to the pile every day, and the streets would be lined with people holding signs and giving us water, or family members looking for somebody that was missing. I mean, I don't know how many flyers I was given," Pickering said.

Benedic said he remembers the crowds of people looking for loved ones, too.

"Thank God I never had anybody give me a flyer because I probably would have lost it at that point," Benedic said. "Because it was so emotional seeing these people. And they're and they were cheering us on."

Thomas said the experience of being a rescuer after the attacks changed him forever.

"We dropped everything we were doing, left our families, you know, our wives, our kids to go to a job that we had trained for, and with no hesitation," he said. "And that's one of the things, you know, I love these guys 'til I die. I look at it as our generation's Pearl Harbor. And I'm proud to have been part of that and we share a bond that you won't be able to ever break."

Thomas said he does not view himself as a hero, though...

"We were glad we were there," he said. "We were proud to be there. We did what we were asked to do, we did as best as we could. But I don't think that's a 'heroes' thing, right? The guys who went up in those towers — the firemen and policemen and whoever went up in those towers — those guys were the heroes."

Benedic agreed.

"We were able to do something," he said. "We perform a function. But I don't...see that as being, you know," he paused. "I felt a little guilty having that."

Looking back, Morris said he believes there are bigger lessons to draw from the days following the 9/11 attacks that took his team to New York.

"I look back to that period of time. There was a definite unification of the country at that period of time," he said. "We're not there right now. And I think, if anything, we should look back and remember those who were the heroes, but we should also look back and say what brought us together as a country? And how can we, you know, how can we remember that?"

NEW YORK —

New York prosecutors have convened a special grand jury to consider evidence in a criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump's business dealings, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

The development signals that the Manhattan district attorney’s office was moving toward seeking charges as a result of its two-year investigation, which included a lengthy legal battle to obtain Trump’s tax records.

The person familiar with the matter was not authorized to speak publicly and did so on condition of anonymity. The news was first reported by The Washington Post.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. is conducting a wide-ranging investigation into a variety of matters such as hush-money payments paid to women on Trump’s behalf, property valuations and employee compensation.

Vance has been using an investigative grand jury through the course of his probe to issue subpoenas and obtain documents. That panel kept working while other grand juries and court activities were shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The investigation includes scrutiny of Trump’s relationship with his lenders; a land donation he made to qualify for an income tax deduction; and tax write-offs his company claimed on millions of dollars in consulting fees it paid.

The new grand jury could eventually be asked to consider returning indictments. While working on that case, it also will be hearing other matters. The Post reported that the grand jury will meet three days a week for six months.

Vance’s office declined to comment. A message seeking comment was left with Trump’s lawyer.

The new grand jury is the latest sign of increasing momentum in the criminal investigation into the Republican ex-president and his company, the Trump Organization.

Attorney General Letitia James said last week that she assigned two lawyers to work with Vance’s office on the probe after her civil investigation into Trump evolved into a criminal matter.

James, also a Democrat, said her office also is continuing its civil investigation into Trump. She did not say what prompted her office to expand its investigation into a criminal probe.

In recent months, Vance hired former mafia prosecutor Mark Pomerantz to help run the investigation and has been interviewing witnesses, including Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen.

Vance declined to run for reelection and will leave office at the end of the year, meaning the Trump case is likely to pass to his successor in some form. An election next month is all but certain to determine who that will be.

Trump issued a statement last week complaining that he’s being “unfairly attacked and abused by a corrupt political system.” He contends the investigations are a “witch hunt” and part of a Democratic plot to silence his voters and block him from running for president again.

In February, the U.S. Supreme Court buoyed Vance’s investigation by clearing the way for the prosecutor to enforce a subpoena on Trump’s accounting firm and obtain eight years of tax returns and related documents for the former president, the Trump Organization and other Trump entities.

The documents are protected by grand jury secrecy rules and are not expected to be made public.

Vance’s investigation has appeared to focus in recent weeks on Trump’s longtime finance chief, Allen Weisselberg. His former daughter-in-law, Jen Weisselberg, is cooperating with both inquiries.

She’s given investigators reams of tax records and other documents as they look into whether some Trump employees were given off-the-books compensation, such as apartments or school tuition.

Allen Weisselberg was subpoenaed in James’ civil investigation and testified twice last year. His lawyer declined to comment when asked Tuesday if he had been subpoenaed to testify before the new grand jury.

A message seeking comment was left with Jen Weisselberg’s lawyer.