A high-ranking prosecutor in New Orleansβ U.S. Attorneyβs Office who led the pending criminal case has been withdrawn from her case and been placed on leave, according to court records and multiple people familiar with the matter.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordan Ginsberg, the officeβs longtime public corruption chief, has helmed the yearslong probe of Cantrell and secured the against her last August. The charges accused the mayor of spending taxpayer money on romantic sojourns with her police bodyguard, Jeffrey Vappie, then conspiring to hide the relationship while she was in office.
Ginsberg was promoted this spring to head the officeβs criminal prosecutions after U.S. Attorney David Courcelle was appointed by President Donald Trump.
Ginsberg was stripped of that title last week, the people familiar with the matter told The Times-Picayune, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the issue. Two of the people said he had been placed on administrative leave.
Further details about Ginsbergβs reassignment were not available Tuesday evening. He did not immediately respond to messages late Tuesday. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorneyβs Office, Shane Jones, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a filing in federal court late Tuesday, the U.S. Attorneyβs Office moved to withdraw Ginsberg from the Cantrell case. The filing was signed by Michael Simpson, a veteran prosecutor who sources said has taken over from Ginsberg as criminal chief, and Nick Moses, the deputy chief of the officeβs public corruption unit who had worked alongside Ginsberg on the Cantrell probe.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.