Trump civil fraud case: Judge fines Trump $354 million, says frauds 'shock the conscience'

The former president was found to have defrauded lenders.

Former President Donald Trump has been fined $354.8 million plus approximately $100 million in interest in a civil fraud lawsuit that could alter the personal fortune and real estate empire that helped propel him to the White House. In the decision, Judge Arthur Engoron excoriated Trump, saying the president's credibility was "severely compromised," that the frauds "shock the conscience" and that Trump and his co-defendants showed a "complete lack of contrition and remorse" that he said "borders on pathological."

Engoron also hit Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump with $4 million fines and barred all three from helming New York companies for years. New York Attorney General Letitia James accused Trump and his adult sons of engaging in a decade-long scheme in which they used "numerous acts of fraud and misrepresentation" to inflate Trump's net worth in order get more favorable loan terms. The former president has denied all wrongdoing and has said he will appeal.


Summary of penalties

Donald Trump and his adult sons were hit with millions in fines in the civil fraud trial and barred for years from being officers in New York companies. The judge said the frauds "shock the conscience."

Donald Trump: $354 million fine + approx. $100 million in interest
+ barred for 3 years from serving as officer of NY company
Donald Trump Jr.: $4 million fine
+ barred for 2 years from serving as officer of NY company
Eric Trump: $4 million fine
+ barred for 2 years from serving as officer of NY company
Former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg: $1 million fine
+ barred for 3 years from serving as officer of NY company
+ barred for life from financial management role in NY company
Former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney:
+ barred for 3 years from serving as officer of NY company
+ barred for life from financial management role in NY company


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Defense to begin presenting its case

As Trump's legal team prepares to begin presenting its case this morning, defense attorney Alina Habba says responsibility for the financial statements that the New York attorney general says are fraudulent lies with Trump's external accounting firm.

Previewing the defense's case during an appearance on Fox's Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo, Habba also said the banks that loaned money to the Trump Organization were responsible for conducting their own due diligence regarding Trump's financial statements.

The state rested its case last week in the sixth week of the trial. The defense has said they expect their case to wrap up by Dec. 15.

Habba also suggested that Donald Trump plans to file a motion seeking a mistrial.

While Habba declined to comment on alleged misconduct by Judge Arthur Engoron's clerk -- which she is prohibited from doing due to the limited gag order handed down by the judge -- she said the issue would be addressed in their mistrial motion "very soon."

"I actually can't tell you why, because I am gagged. I can tell you that we will be filing papers to address all of those issues," Habba said.

However, Habba downplayed the chance the motion would be favorably decided Engoron.

"The problem we have is the judge is the one who is going to make those decisions, and he has proven himself to be quite motivated by the other side," Habba said.


Court administrator responds to Stefanik's complaint

In response to Rep. Elise Stefanik's letter of complaint against Judge Engoron that she filed Friday with the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct, a spokesperson for New York State Office of Court Administration has issued a statement.

"Judge Engoron's actions and rulings in this matter are all part of the public record and speak for themselves," said Office of Court Administration communications director Al Baker. "It is inappropriate to comment further."


Rep. Stefanik files complaint against Judge Engoron

Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York has filed a judicial complaint against Judge Arthur Engoron.

The letter, addressed to the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct, largely concerns the judge's rulings in the case and his public statements, and is unlikely to impact the proceedings of the trial.

"Judge Engoron's bizarre and biased behavior is making New York's judicial system a laughingstock," Stefanik, a staunch Trump supporter, wrote.

The lengthy letter echoes some of Trump's attacks on the trial, criticizing Engoron's limited gag order in the case, the actions of his legal clerk, his summary judgment ruling, and his comments during Trump's testimony this week.

"Simply put, Judge Engoron has displayed a clear judicial bias against the defendant throughout the case, breaking several rules in the New York Code of Judicial Conduct," Stefanik wrote.


Court adjourned until Monday

Court has adjourned for the day, with the trial scheduled to resume Monday for the start of the defense's case.

The court will be closed Friday in observation of Veterans Day.

Donald Trump Jr. will return to the witness stand to testify as the defense's first witness on Monday, assuming the judge does not rule in favor of Trump's motion for a directed verdict to end the case early.


'I wasn't involved' preparing financial statements, Trump Jr. says

Before stepping down from the witness stand at the end of the afternoon, Donald Trump Jr. was asked repeatedly about his involvement in the Trump Organization's statements of financial condition -- the allegedly fraudulent documents that underpin the attorney general's case.

Trump Jr., who signed and certified the accuracy of the statements while his father was president between 2016 and 2021, said that he was not involved in preparing the filings.

"I wasn't involved in the compilation of this statement of financial condition," Trump Jr. said, placing the responsibility on his accountants.

"Did you work on the statement of financial condition for June 30, 2017?" state attorney Colleen Faherty asked.

"I did not. The accountants worked on it. That's what we paid them to do," Trump Jr. said.

Throughout the afternoon, the tone of the proceedings alternated rapidly between lighthearted and heated, varying from playful interactions between Trump Jr. and Judge Engoron, to bitter spats between some of the lawyers.

"I know you don't like it when good evidence comes in," Faherty told the defense lawyers during one particularly heated exchange.

"There's no reason to raise your voice," Donald Trump Jr.'s lawyer, Clifford Robert, responded.

Trump Jr. is scheduled to return to the stand tomorrow morning.