New York Lawsuits vs Trump

New York AG Asks Judge to Fine Trump $10K a Day
Jose Pagliery
Thu, April 7, 2022, 10:47 AM·

New York’s attorney general formally asked a judge on Thursday to hold former President Donald Trump “in contempt of court” and subject him to a $10,000 daily fine for his refusal to turn over evidence, even after he was ordered to by a state judge.

Trump would be subject to the proposed fine every day he does not turn over evidence he’s already been ordered to deliver.

Trump and his family corporate empire are under attack by AG Letitia James, whose probe into the company’s alleged bank fraud has reached a turning point. The company has only a month left to turn over evidence, while Trump and two of his adult children face potential grilling by investigators.

Following a legal clown show on Feb. 17, New York State Judge Arthur F. Engoron ordered the former president, Don Jr., and Ivanka Trump to sit down for sworn testimony for their alleged role in a long-running business fraud scheme. That order is now making its way through the state’s appellate courts.

Judge Demands Trump Org Quit Stalling on Turning Over Evidence

Importantly, however, the judge also ordered the former president to turn over documents related to his supposedly bogus statements of financial condition—which his own accountants at the firm Mazars USA recently disavowed as completely unreliable.

Trump was also ordered to comply with the Dec. 1 subpoena by turning over “documents and communications” related to his financing of the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago, planned development of the expansive Seven Springs Estate in upstate New York, and any claims of extravagant wealth he made to Forbes Magazine.

Now the state’s attorney general is asking the judge to increase pressure on Trump for still not turning over those documents. According to James’ office, the evidence was due on March 3 and Trump got an extension he asked for to push that back to the end of March. But as of April 7, investigators still don’t have it in their possession.

"This court’s order was not an opening bid for a negotiation or an invitation for a new round of challenges to the subpoena," Andrew Amer, attorney at the AG's office, wrote in the filing on Thursday. "The ship has long since sailed on Mr. Trump’s ability to raise any such objections."

A spokesperson for the former president did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Neither did his defense lawyers in this case.

Why Is the Manhattan DA Returning Evidence in Trump Case?

The AG’s long-running investigation—which is limited to a potential civil case against Trump, his executives and his company—appears to have reached its final stages. The company only has a few more weeks to turn over evidence that investigators asked for three years ago.

Meanwhile, all eyes are on James and her team now that the parallel criminal investigation over at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office seems to be fizzling out. The two top prosecutors in that case have quit out of protest over DA Alvin Bragg Jr.’s apparent unwillingness to approve an indictment of the former president, and his office has begun returning evidence to witnesses.

Hey, they're desperate, they gotta do something to keep attention away from Biden's never-ending fuckups.

Democrats should start their own cable channel. They could call it "The Judge Shopping Network".

New York judge denies Trump's request to end contempt order, keeps fine
Fri, April 29, 2022, 11:25 AM | Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York judge on Friday denied a request from Donald Trump's lawyer to end a contempt-of-court finding against the former U.S. president and kept in place $10,000-a-day fine over his failure to comply with a subpoena issued by the state attorney general investigating the business practices of Trump's family company, the Trump Organization.

Justice Arthur Engoron in New York state court in Manhattan said he was not satisfied with an affidavit provided by Trump and said there was no evidence Trump had conducted a thorough search for the records sought by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

"I am surprised he doesn't seem to have any documents, they're all with the organization," the judge said.

"I will consider your request to terminate the fine," he told Trump lawyer Alina Habba. "But if you don't hear from me, the clock is still ticking."

James says her probe has turned up evidence the Trump Organization, which manages hotels, golf courses and other real estate around the world, has given banks and tax authorities misleading financing information in order to obtain financial benefits such as favorable loans and tax breaks.

Trump, a Republican, has denied wrongdoing and calls the probe politically motivated. James is a Democrat.

Judge agrees to stop fining Donald Trump $10,000 a day under certain conditions
AARON KATERSKY | ABC News
Wed, May 11, 2022, 10:32 AM

A judge in New York on Wednesday said he would purge his contempt finding against former President Donald Trump provided he met certain conditions by the end of next week, including paying a daily fine that had accompanied the order.

Judge Arthur Engoron held Trump in contempt, and fined him $10,000 a day, for failing to comply with a subpoena for documents issued by the New York Attorney General's Office as part of a civil investigation into Trump's business practices.

Trump's attorney said he had no documents responsive to the subpoena, but the judge faulted Trump's failure to swear, under oath, that he even bothered to look.

If Trump provides satisfactory affidavits, if an outside firm he hired to search his files completes a report and if he pays the fine, Engoron said he would lift the contempt order.

"I want the fine paid," Engoron said. "That fine is now $110,000."

Trump had said in a sworn affidavit on April 29 that he did not possess any documents related to Attorney General Letitia James' investigation into how the Trump Organization valued its real estate holdings while applying for loans and tax benefits.

"To the best of my knowledge, (i) I do not have any of the documents requested in the subpoena dated December 1, 2021 in my personal possession; and (ii) if there are any documents responsive to the subpoena I believe they would be in the possession or custody of the Trump Organization," Trump's affidavit said.

He added, "At all relevant times, I have authorized, and continue to authorize, the release of a responsive document to the Office of the Attorney General.”