A grand jury indicts Louisiana’s attorney general Liz Murrill in a fight over changes to New Orleans courts

The 16-count indictment charges Republican Liz Murrill, Louisiana’s first female attorney general, with intimidation and malfeasance. Murrill vowed she would “not back down.”

Louisiana’s attorney general was indicted Thursday over accusations she threatened the jobs of New Orleans leaders who fought a Republican-led overhaul of local courts in the heavily Democratic city.

Limited time: Save 25% on NBC News subscription

Get exclusive reporting, live Q&As and ad-free reading.

The 16-count indictment against Republican Liz Murrill, handed up by a New Orleans grand jury, charges Louisiana’s first female attorney general with intimidation and malfeasance. At the center of the case are deepening rifts between state leaders in Louisiana, which is heavily Republican, and Democrats who control the state’s most prominent city.

Republican Gov. Jeff Landry promised a swift pardon, saying Murrill would not have her reputation tarnished by an “Orleans kangaroo court.” Mayor Helena Moreno, a Democrat, was among those who had accused the state’s top law enforcement official in May of making threats against public officials.