Felony criminal charges against Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill dropped

Felony charges against Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill have been dismissed, according to her attorney. 

Murrill was indicted earlier this month by an Orleans Parish grand jury on 16 felony counts, including eight counts of malfeasance in office and eight of public intimidation, KALB reported. 

The charges followed letters Murrill had sent in May to New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno and other city officials. The letter allegedly threatened to remove them from office if they continued to oppose a new state law that consolidated the Orleans Parish civil and criminal court clerks into one position.

Retired judge Laurie A. White, who was assigned as a special prosecutor for the case, dismissed the case Wednesday morning. The eight alleged victims in the case wrote or co-signed letters to White urging him to drop the charges or saying they wouldn't object if the case was dropped. 

"This case should have NEVER been started because there was NO crime. This outcome will not deter my efforts to get to the bottom of this. The irresponsible and illegal actions that led to this abuse of the criminal justice system need to never happen again," Murrill said in a statement concerning the case's dismissal.