DOJ secures lengthy sentence for shooting, assault of corrections officer

A 21-year-old Kent County man has pled guilty to multiple charges relating to a 2023 shooting in Camden, Delaware. On May 27th, 2025, Jay’Mere Matthews was sentenced to 11 years’ incarceration followed by descending levels of probation. Matthews previously pled Guilty but Mentally Ill to Assault in the First Degree and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony and Guilty to Assault in the Second Degree of a Correction Officer.

“The shooting carried out by Matthews was a deeply heinous act with no regard whatsoever for the safety of others. I am grateful for this sentencing,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “It should also be said that we know all too well in this state the risks that correction officers face on a daily basis; this sentencing makes clear that we will not tolerate any threats to their safety.”

Matthews was arrested following an incident at the Redner’s grocery store in Camden, Delaware, where he shot an unarmed employee on August 22nd, 2023. While in custody at Sussex Correctional Institution for that crime, he assaulted a correction officer on December 25th, 2023. Matthews will receive a mental health evaluation and may serve a portion of his sentence at the Delaware Psychiatric Center before being remanded to the Department of Correction.

Federal court blocks Trump administration’s disastrous tariffs

A federal court has blocked unlawful tariffs imposed by President Trump’s executive orders under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The ruling, issued Wednesday afternoon by the U.S. Court of International Trade, came in response to a multistate lawsuit from 12 state attorneys general, including Delaware AG Kathy Jennings.

“The courts have affirmed what every reasonable person already knew: these tariffs were baseless, senseless, and illegal,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “There are no winners in a trade war. These unlawful tariffs alienated our closest allies, jeopardized small businesses, and threatened to pummel the backbone of America’s already struggling workforce. I am grateful to the courts for restoring common sense.”

“Tariffs are a tax, and these taxes were levied illegally from the beginning, hurting working families,” said Governor Matt Meyer. “I want to thank Attorney General Jennings for her continued leadership in holding the Trump administration accountable when they try to con Delawareans and Americans out of even more of their hard-earned money.”

According to the International Trade Administration:

Delaware imported more than $10 billion of goods and exported nearly $5 billion in goods in 2024
Nearly 90% of the firms exporting goods in 2022 were small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) employing less than 500 employees.
Trade supports tens of thousands of Delaware jobs: roughly 36,000 Delaware jobs are supported by foreign-owned firms investing in the United States, and roughly 17,000 are supported by Delaware’s export economy.

Major Delaware employers, including DuPont and Mountaire, have been subject to retaliatory measures from China as a result of Trump’s trade war.

Studies of the tariffs President Trump issued in his first term show that 95 percent of the cost of tariffs are paid by Americans. The Federal Reserve and the International Monetary Fund projected that the 2025 tariffs would cause inflation.

Under Article I of the Constitution, only Congress has the “Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises.” The executive orders cite the powers granted by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), but that law applies only when an emergency presents “unusual and extraordinary threat” from abroad and does not give the President the power to impose tariffs. Congress enacted IEEPA in 1977. No President had imposed tariffs based on IEEPA until President Trump did so this year.

Wednesday’s decision halts the existing IEEPA tariffs. It also stops President Trump from increasing tariffs, including the threatened 145 percent tariffs on imports from China and 50 percent tariffs on imports from the European Union.

Attorney General Kathy Jennings sues Trump administration to protect scientific research and education programs

Attorney General Kathy Jennings, joining with 15 other attorneys general, sued the Trump administration to stop its illegal attempts to cut critical National Science Foundation (NSF) programs and funding that maintain the United States’ position as a global leader in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). On April 18, NSF began unlawfully terminating projects focused on increasing the participation of women, minorities, and people with disabilities in STEM fields. On May 2, NSF announced that it would also cap “indirect costs” of research projects like laboratory space, equipment, and facility services at 15 percent. This arbitrary limit on indirect costs would slash millions of dollars for groundbreaking scientific research across the country, jeopardizing national security, the economy, and public health. With this lawsuit, Attorney General Jennings is seeking a court order blocking the implementation of the administration’s new directives.

“If you had asked someone how to destroy this country from within, they’d tell you to do exactly what this administration is doing,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “I’m not sure how illegally tearing apart America’s STEM infrastructure is supposed to make us ‘great again’. I do know, however, that it is flagrantly unlawful.”

Since its creation in 1950, NSF has been an independent federal agency crucial to maintaining the United States’ dominance in science. From developing artificial intelligence (AI) technology to creating innovative solutions to environmental and energy challenges, NSF-funded research at American universities is vital to addressing the nation’s biggest challenges and maintaining the country’s competitive edge.

Several Delaware institutions have long been supported by NSF funding, including the University of Delaware, Delaware State University, and several other private entities. The University of Delaware alone – which has used its NSF funding to support major breakthroughs it has achieved in the fields of pharmaceuticals, biology, and agriculture, among others – would lose close to $10 million in grants and funding should the illegal attempts to cut NSF funding be allowed to proceed.

NSF also has a congressionally mandated focus on improving diversity in STEM fields. Congress has mandated in law that a “core strategy” of NSF’s work must be to increase the participation of people who have historically been left out of STEM occupations. This policy has been a success. As the lawsuit notes, between 1995 and 2017, the number of women in science and engineering occupations, or with science or engineering degrees, has doubled. During that same time, people of color went from 15 percent to 35 percent of science and engineering job or degree holders. As a result of NSF’s new directive to terminate programs seeking to increase diversity in STEM, dozens of projects have been canceled.

Attorney General Jennings and the coalition also assert that NSF’s directive to cap indirect costs at 15 percent would devastate scientific research. NSF’s new cap would mean essential research and infrastructure would be cut, leading to critical projects being abandoned, staff laid off, and research essential to national security, public health, and economic stability ending. Similar efforts to cap indirect costs at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Department of Energy (DOE) have already been stopped by courts, in part due to a lawsuit brought by Attorney General Jennings and other attorneys general.

The lawsuit asserts that NSF’s new directives violate the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution by unlawfully changing NSF policy and ignoring the law regarding how NSF should function. AG Jennings seeks a court order blocking NSF’s illegal new policies from being implemented.

Joining Attorney General Jennings in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Attorney General Jennings wins court order stopping dismantling of Department of Education

Attorney General Kathy Jennings has won a court order stopping the Trump administration’s attempts to dismantle the federal Department of Education (DOE). On March 13, Attorney General Jennings joined a coalition of 20 other attorneys general in suing the administration after it announced plans to illegally eliminate 50 percent of DOE’s workforce. Following a March 20 Executive Order directing the closure of DOE and President Trump’s March 21 announcement that the Department must “immediately” transfer student loan management and special education services outside of the Department, Attorney General Jennings and the coalition sought a preliminary injunction to immediately stop the mass layoffs and transfer of services. On May 22, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted the preliminary injunction, halting the administration’s dismantling of DOE and ordering that all employees who were fired as part of the layoffs be reinstated.

That means that Delaware will continue to receive critical support from DOE. For example, DEO will continue to process the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (the “FAFSA”) and applications for Pell grants, and Delaware high school students and their families will be able to get the support and information they need to complete the FAFSA. Delaware students and educators facing discrimination on the basis of sex, race, or disability will now continue to be able to seek help from DOE’s Office Civil Rights. DOE will continue to process federal adult education grants through the Office of Career Technical and Adult Education. The order also enables continued Federal support for Delaware teacher recruitment and mentorship programs. DOE will continue to support programs that advance Delaware students’ expertise and competence in world languages and Delaware teachers who teach and conduct research on critical world regions, languages, and issues.

“Not content with wrecking our nation’s national security, economy, and social safety net, this administration decided that it needed to go after our student loan borrowers and special education programs, too,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “Fortunately, this order – and the numerous others like it – affirm what anyone with an ounce of sense already knew: the power to fund or defund programs or departments rests with Congress, not with the presidency.”

Attorney General Jennings and the coalition noted in their lawsuit that the Trump administration’s attacks on DOE are illegal and unconstitutional. The DOE is an executive agency authorized by Congress, with numerous laws creating its various programs and funding streams; the executive branch

does not have the legal authority to unilaterally dismantle it without an act of Congress. In addition, Attorney General Jennings and the coalition noted that DOE’s mass layoffs violate the Administrative Procedures Act.

Joining Attorney General Jennings in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.

Investor alert: protect your financial information

Data aggregators (which collect and organize data from multiple sources) and third-party platforms are utilized by financial professionals to put all your financial information online and in one place. This can help you and your financial professional organize and manage your finances. However, before you decide to use a data aggregator or third-party platform, it pays to know how these services operate and how to protect yourself from potential privacy and security risks.

When using a financial data aggregator, your “dashboard,” sometimes called a personal financial management hub or portal, can display your investments, checking accounts, savings, insurance policies and credit balances. In addition to a snapshot of your overall finances, depending on the provider, you could receive services such as financial and tax planning, financial advice, budgeting, and the ability to track home value and mortgage information. There could be fees and costs associated with some data aggregation services.

Many customers value the convenience of financial data aggregation and appreciate having a single snapshot of multiple accounts. However, providing access to your detailed financial information can come with some risks. These tips can help you protect yourself if you decide to share your financial information with a data aggregator or third-party platform or service providers who use data aggregators and third-party platforms:

Weigh the benefits of aggregation against the risks of sharing access to your accounts. This is especially true when you authorize a third party to facilitate payments, trades, or withdrawals of securities or funds on your behalf.
Understand whether the data aggregator’s connections to your financial institutions come from screen scraping, in which the aggregator uses your credentials to sign in to accounts and collect information, or application programming interface, which transfers data from the financial institution to the aggregator without sharing credentials, or both.
Read the terms and conditions of any user agreement or contract you sign. Know what rights you are granting to your financial accounts and data.
Verify that the aggregator or the third-party platform will only access the information it needs to provide the desired service.
Be aware that there might be charges for certain transactions and services you elect to use.
Ask what privacy and data security measures are used, and read the terms of use, privacy and security information.
If the aggregator or third-party platform uses scraping algorithms to collect data from your financial accounts, does it store your credentials?
Know whether supplemental or authorized users can withdraw funds or securities from your accounts. Be cautious of granting a power of attorney to third-party platforms. Know what powers you are granting.
Do your own online research and due diligence. Look up reviews, complaints, or lawsuits against the data aggregator or the third-party service provider you are considering using.
What type of liability, if any, does the aggregator or third-party platform bear in the event of a consumer loss due to a data breach or unauthorized access? Does the aggregator or third-party platform have the financial capacity or insurance coverage to compensate you for loss? What kind of dispute mechanism is in place to resolve any issues related to data breaches or unauthorized access? Keep in mind that if you share your log-in information with an investment adviser and suffer a loss in the account, the custodian may be able to disclaim liability.
Finally, make sure you cancel your account and terminate the access and rights you have granted to the aggregator or third-party platform once you discontinue using the service. Follow the steps that need to be taken to stop the ability of the aggregator or third-party platform from having ongoing access to your account(s).

The Investor Protection Unit of the Delaware Department of Justice cautions investors to carefully review the terms of any agreements with data aggregators or third-party platforms used by your financial professionals before you or your financial professional share your personal financial details. To learn more about the risks of data aggregation and ways to protect yourself and your data, click here.

To file a complaint, please contact the Investor Protection Unit at Investor.Protection@delaware.gov. The Investor Protection Unit also encourages investors to check the registration status of financial professionals at brokercheck.finra.org and adviserinfo.sec.gov.