(The Center Square) – Despite Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill’s indictment being dismissed, it was made clear on Wednesday by her and Gov. Jeff Landry that there is still a bone to pick with City leaders.

During a press conference dedicated to the incoming tropical storm, Landry and Murrill repeatedly addressed their feud with New Orleans, raising the prospect of a federal investigation into Murrill’s indictment and calling for further legislation to give the state greater control over the city’s courts.

Landry also suggested that the state Judiciary Commission investigate the indictment and that the law licenses of City Councilmember JP Morrell and District Attorney Jason Williams be stripped.

I think there are a lot of unanswered questions about how this came to be,” Murrill said when asked whether she wanted a federal investigation. “I think we all deserve those answers.”

Murrill identified a range of potential crimes stemming from her indictment, including interference with a statewide federal election, civil rights violations, manipulation or obstruction of grand jury proceedings, obstruction of justice, wire fraud, damaging public records, malfeasance and public intimidation — the same offense she has been accused of committing.

She argued that the indictment itself could constitute public intimidation because, in her view, she was threatened with imprisonment for carrying out her duties as attorney general.

Murrill also said her office is pursuing public records related to the case and intends to expand those requests. She questioned whether Williams’ office was as uninvolved in the prosecution as he has maintained, saying unnamed people had told her otherwise.

She added that civil litigation could follow, calling the case a “malicious prosecution.”

Murrill has been adamant from the beginning that her letters to City officials were lawful warnings about the consequences of violating state law, not criminal threats.

“What I did was not a crime. It was never a crime,” Murrill said Wednesday, arguing that attorneys general and other law enforcement officials routinely advise public officials about the law and potential penalties for violating it.

Murrill was indicted after sending letters to New Orleans officials amid a dispute over control of the Orleans Parish criminal court clerk’s office. She has maintained that City officials acted unlawfully by attempting to install someone into what she described Wednesday as a “fictional office” during the week of a statewide election.

“They broke the law by creating a fictional office and appointing someone to it during the week of a statewide election because they were more concerned about their own politics than complying with the law,” Murrill alleged. She blamed Williams for setting the events in motion by initially writing to the City Council about the office.

Landry similarly cast doubt on how the indictment originated.

“How many of y’all actually believe that a grand jury of citizens in New Orleans spontaneously just decided that the letter sent by the attorney general to the City Council was a criminal act?” Landry asked reporters.

The fallout could also carry a cost for taxpayers.

Murrill estimated she has accumulated roughly $250,000 in legal bills defending herself and said she intends to seek reimbursement because the conduct underlying the indictment occurred while she was acting in her official capacity.

Murrill’s indictment began with a law passed by the Legislature that dissolved the separately elected Orleans Parish criminal court clerk’s office and consolidated its duties with the civil clerk’s office.

The change prevented Calvin Duncan, who had been elected criminal court clerk in 2025, from taking office and placed the consolidated office under Civil District Court Clerk Chelsey Richard Napoleon. New Orleans officials disputed that interpretation, arguing the legislation instead created a new combined clerk’s office that needed to be filled.

The New Orleans City Council subsequently appointed retired Judge Calvin Johnson as interim clerk and called a special election for the position.

Murrill warned city officials that those actions violated state law. In letters sent to Mayor Helena Moreno, District Attorney Jason Williams and five City Council members, she threatened legal action to remove officials from office if they proceeded and said she would act to prevent Johnson from assuming the clerk’s duties.

Those letters became the basis of a 16-count grand jury indictment charging Murrill with eight counts each of public intimidation and malfeasance in office. The charges were dropped Wednesday by special prosecutor Laurie White after Moreno, Williams and several council members asked that the prosecution be dismissed.

Landry said that lawmakers are expressing interest in convening a special session to “look at ways that they can take more control of the court system in the city of New Orleans.”

“I’ve got a lot of legislators wanting to go back into session,” Landry said.