09/20/19 08:11 PM EDT
Trump ordered to appear for deposition in case involving his security guards
A New York judge Friday ordered President Trump to answer questions in a civil suit involving a 2015 incident between protesters and his security guards.
State Supreme Court Justice Doris Gonzalez ruled Trump must “appear for a videotaped deposition prior to the trial” under oath, saying his testimony is “indispensable.”
The trial involves a group of protesters who say Trump’s security guards assaulted them outside of Trump Tower in 2015. The plaintiffs were demonstrating against Trump’s rhetoric toward Mexican immigrants.
The judge rejected arguments from Trump’s camp saying the president’s duties should exempt him from testifying. Gonzalez said Trump may answer questions from the White House “at a time that will accommodate his busy schedule,” and that “there would be no necessity for the president to attend in person, though he could elect to do so.”
“The decision is not surprising. It may be newsworthy, but it's not surprising. No one is above the law, including the president of the United States,” Attorney Benjamin Dictor, who's representing the plaintiffs, told NBC News.
Dictor added that he wrote to Trump attorney Lawrence Rosen after the ruling requesting he “advise what date, time and location will be made available to appear” to testify.
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