THE CRASH. THE NAME OF THE PERSON KILLED HAS NOT BEEN RELEASED. WE HAVE AN UPDATE ON THE CASE AGAINST GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM’S EX TOP AIDE, WHO IS FACING NEARLY TWO DOZEN FEDERAL CHARGES. WE’VE LEARNED TONIGHT THAT DANA WILLIAMSON IS IN THE HOSPITAL AFTER HAVING A SUCCESSFUL MEDICAL PROCEDURE THAT IS IMPACTING HER CASE, KCRA THREE POLITICAL DIRECTOR ASHLEY ZAVALA WAS THE FIRST TO REPORT THIS TODAY, AND SHE HAS THIS UPDATE. DANA WILLIAMSON GOT A LIVER TRANSPLANT AND IS GETTING MORE TIME TO PREPARE FOR HER NEXT COURT DATE IN THE FEDERAL CASE AGAINST HER. HER ATTORNEY CONFIRMED THIS TO ME TODAY. WILLIAMSON WAS INDICTED IN NOVEMBER AND WAS NOT EXPECTED TO ATTEND COURT PROCEEDINGS AS SHE WAITED FOR A NEW LIVER, FEDERAL PROSECUTORS ACCUSED WILLIAMSON OF VARIOUS CRIMES STEMMING FROM THREE SEPARATE INCIDENTS, INCLUDING ORGANIZING A SCHEME TO STEAL $225,000 IN FUNDS FROM AN INACTIVE POLITICAL CAMPAIGN, PLUS ALLEGEDLY FALSIFYING DOCUMENTS AS SHE WAS BEING INVESTIGATED FOR TAKING SMALL BUSINESS LOANS DURING THE PANDEMIC AND ALLEGED TAX FRAUD. A STATUS CONFERENCE WAS SCHEDULED THIS WEEK IN SACRAMENTO TO DISCUSS THE CASE’S TIMELINE MOVING FORWARD AND A POSSIBLE TRIAL DATE, BUT THAT STATUS CONFERENCE HAS BEEN PUSHED TO APRIL 16TH. WILLIAMSON’S ATTORNEYS, IN A RECENT COURT FILING, POINTED TO THE MEDICAL PROCEDURE AND ALSO ALL THE DOCUMENTS AND DATA THEY STILL NEED TO GO THROUGH THAT PROSECUTORS HAD COLLECTED IN THIS CASE. NOW BEFORE WILLIAMSON’S ATTORNEY, MCGREGOR SCOTT, CONFIRMED HER LIVER TRANSPLANT WITH ME TODAY. I HAD HEARD IT FROM SEVERAL SOURCES THIS MORNING. THOSE SAME SOURCES TOLD ME WILLIAMSON HAD BEEN CALLING SOME FORMER POLITICAL CLIENTS, BASICALLY LOOKING FOR WORK FOR HER CONSULTING SERVICES TO PUT HER ON RETAINER. WHIL
Gov. Newsom’s ex-top aide gets liver transplant, new court date in federal case against her
Updated: 6:11 PM PST Feb 2, 2026
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Dana Williamson, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s ex-top aide who is facing nearly two dozen federal charges, has successfully undergone a liver transplant and will have more time to prepare for her next court date. Federal prosecutors have accused Williamson of various crimes stemming from three separate incidents, including organizing a scheme to steal $225,000 in funds from an inactive political campaign account belonging to former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, falsifying documents as she was being investigated for taking small business loans during the pandemic, and tax fraud. Williamson was not expected to physically attend court as she had been awaiting the transplant. Her attorney, McGregor Scott, confirmed Monday that she had received the transplant, KCRA 3 was first to report. She was still in the hospital as of Monday afternoon. Court records show Scott asked the court to give her more time in part because of the procedure. “The procedure went well and was successful, but full recovery is expected to take months,” Scott wrote in a court filing Jan. 30. “During this time, defendant and defense counsel will continue to confer and prepare but must work around medical appointments and other medical considerations.” A status conference that was scheduled this week has been continued to April 16 to also give Williamson’s team more time to go through the tons of documents and data prosecutors have collected in the case. The hearing, originally scheduled for this week, was meant to establish a timeline and set a possible date for trial. KCRA 3 first learned about Williamson’s liver transplant through multiple sources on Monday. Those same sources said she had been calling some former political clients looking for work, asking them to put her on retainer for her consulting services. Scott, in a text message, said he couldn’t speak to that. A legal defense fund established by Williamson’s friends has so far raised $13,723 of its $100,000 goal. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
Dana Williamson, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s ex-top aide who is facing nearly two dozen federal charges, has successfully undergone a liver transplant and will have more time to prepare for her next court date.
Federal prosecutors have accused Williamson of various crimes stemming from three separate incidents, including organizing a scheme to steal $225,000 in funds from an inactive political campaign account belonging to former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, falsifying documents as she was being investigated for taking small business loans during the pandemic, and tax fraud.
Williamson was not expected to physically attend court as she had been awaiting the transplant. Her attorney, McGregor Scott, confirmed Monday that she had received the transplant, KCRA 3 was first to report. She was still in the hospital as of Monday afternoon.
Court records show Scott asked the court to give her more time in part because of the procedure.
“The procedure went well and was successful, but full recovery is expected to take months,” Scott wrote in a court filing Jan. 30. “During this time, defendant and defense counsel will continue to confer and prepare but must work around medical appointments and other medical considerations.”
A status conference that was scheduled this week has been continued to April 16 to also give Williamson’s team more time to go through the tons of documents and data prosecutors have collected in the case. The hearing, originally scheduled for this week, was meant to establish a timeline and set a possible date for trial.
KCRA 3 first learned about Williamson’s liver transplant through multiple sources on Monday. Those same sources said she had been calling some former political clients looking for work, asking them to put her on retainer for her consulting services.
Scott, in a text message, said he couldn’t speak to that.
A legal defense fund established by Williamson’s friends has so far raised $13,723 of its $100,000 goal.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
