Trump ordered not to talk about court staff in 2nd day of fraud trial
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Former President Donald Trump is in court in Manhattan for a third day for the civil fraud case over his business practices.
Trump told reporters he wanted to be in the courtroom in person “Because I want to watch this witch hunt myself,” per CNN.
On Tuesday, a state court judge imposed a limited gag order after Trump published a post on social media mocking “a key court staffer,” The Associated Press reported.
“Personal attacks on members of my court staff are unacceptable, not appropriate, and I will not tolerate them,” New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, the judge presiding over the case, said after calling out a defendant’s ”disparaging, untrue and personally identifying post about a member of my staff,” per AP.
What is Trump’s civil trial about?
New York Attorney General Letitia James brought a civil suit “accusing the former president and his company of committing rampant fraud,” The Washington Post reported.
She alleges that Trump inflated “the value of his assets by billions of dollars to secure better loan and insurance terms,” according to Reuters.
During a pretrial decision last week, Engoron found “that fraud was committed broadly by the Trump Organization and its executives,” per the Post.
What we know about the trial:
James is seeking $250 million in penalties in the lawsuit.
She is also calling for a ban on Trump’s ability to perform business dealings in New York, depending on the trial result.
If upheld on appeal, it “could force him to give up prized New York properties such as Trump Tower, a Wall Street office building, golf courses and a suburban estate,” per AP.
The trial will be held before a judge, with no jury.
Trump plans to attend the first week of trial.
The trial is scheduled to go until early December and covers nearly 500 entities in Trump’s portfolio, per Reuters.
What we know about Trump’s second day in court
On Tuesday, Trump posted a photo of Engoron’s clerk, Allison Greenfield, pictured with Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer “mocking her as ‘Schumer’s girlfriend,’” The New York Times reported. The post has since been deleted.
Engoron explained that he would not be allowed to share any emails, public posts or make public statements about his staff, and if Trump ignores the order, there would be serious sanctions, per the Times.
Trump told reporters that he would take the witness stand during the case “at the appropriate time,” according to NBC News.
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What we know about Trump’s first day in court
Trump described the first day of trial as a “Good day” and plans to continue appearing in court this week.
“Good day at trial today as the judge will be honoring the Appellate Court’s unanimous decision on the Statute of Limitations!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday. “This reduces the case by approximately 80%. See you in Court on Tuesday morning!”
Judge Arthur Engoron, who is presiding over the case, clarified the statute of limitations in the case.
On Monday, he suggested testimony concerning Trump’s 2011 financial statement might be too old to be applicable in the lawsuit because it was beyond the legal time limit, The Associated Press reported. On Tuesday, he explained that the statute of limitations applies to claims from the case, not evidence — meaning both sides could use older evidence throughout the lawsuit, just not older testimony.
Trump was not required to appear in court for the case, but he “used the opportunity to bolster his presidential campaign,” CNN reported.
He accused James of interfering with his campaign with the lawsuit.
“This has to do with election interference, plain and simple,” Trump said before walking into the courtroom, according to CNN. “They’re trying to damage me, so I don’t do as well as I’m doing in the election.”
Prosecutors called on their first witness, a former accountant at Mazars USA that managed Trump’s taxes at one point, according to ABC News. Donald Bender “testified at length about his involvement in compiling Trump’s statements of financial condition between 2011 and 2020.”
“That was the Trump Organization’s responsibility,” Bender said, referring to the accounting standard used in the statements, per ABC News.
What Trump, James say about the civil lawsuit
Trump has called the lawsuit “a scam” and “a sham” and claims it’s an attempt to interfere with his 2024 presidential campaign.
Here are other things Trump said about the trial as he entered the courtroom on Monday:
“What we have here is an attempt to hurt me in an election,” he said, per AP, adding: “I don’t think the people of this country are going to stand for it.”
“Everything was perfect. There was no crime. The crime is against me,” he told reporters, per CNBC.
“Every time they give me a fake indictment, I go up in the polls,” Trump said, per the Post.
James has argued the state of New York has enough evidence to hold a viable trial against Trump.
Here are other things James has said about the trial:
“No matter how powerful you are, and no matter how much money you think you have, no one is above the law,” she said on her way into the courthouse, per AP.
“The law is both powerful and fragile. And today in court will prove our case,” she said, according to Reuters.
“For years, Donald Trump falsely inflated his net worth to enrich himself and cheat the system,” she said in a statement Monday, per CNBC.
What happens next in Trump civil trial?
It will be a showdown of experts sharing opinions and understandings of financial documents and financial law that could include 150 potential witnesses.
Engoron has already canceled business certificates associated with companies in Trump’s empire “and said he would appoint receivers to oversee their dissolution,” Reuters reported. How that order will be enforced has not been determined yet but would provide a devastating blow to Trump’s financial situation.
In one recent win for Trump, the Supreme Court announced it would not be taking up a challenge to Trump’s eligibility to run for president in 2024 due to allegations about connections to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, CNN reported.
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