Days after a New York jury ordered Donald Trump to pay $83.3 million on top of the $5 million he was previously ordered to pay to sexual assault accuser E. Jean Carroll, the former president and 2024 GOP frontrunner now faces $370 million in penalties for allegedly committing years of financial fraud.
And instead of a jury deliberating, Judge Arthur Engoron, who hates Trump, has sole discretion over the penalty after anti-Trump New York Attorney General Letitia James (who called him an "Illegitimate president" during her run for AG) made the request for $370 million after originally seeking $250 million.
Engoron, who said earlier this month that he will try to issue a ruling in the case by Jan. 31, has already ruled that Trump committed years of fraud by inflating his wealth and assets in order to obtain preferential terms from banks. And because Trump waived his right to a trial by jury, Engoron will be the sole arbiter when it comes to claims and penalties.
James filed the civil lawsuit in 2022, accusing Trump and family members of financial fraud - inflating his net worth by as much as $3.6 billion for over a decade. James also says that Trump and his employees made false entries in business records, falsified financial statements, and committed insurance fraud.
The judge has already removed various business certificates from Trump, two of his sons, and the Trump Organization.
Trump took the stand in the case last November, but skipped a second testimony on Dec.11, saying on Truth Social: "I have already testified to everything & have nothing more to say other than that this is a complete & total election interference."
As Axios notes, three of Trump's children have testified in the case:
- Donald Trump Jr. denied having any role in preparing financial statements for the Trump Organization, saying during his testimony that accountants prepared them. The statements are at the center of the lawsuit.
- Eric Trump, meanwhile, sought to differentiate between general financial records created for the Trump Organization and statements of financial condition. He also claimed that he and his siblings are "collateral damage" of the case against their father.
- Ivanka Trump, who was dismissed from the lawsuit, testified she was not involved in preparing her father's financial statements. The prosecution rested its case after her testimony.
Trump took the stand for nearly four hours in November, in which he and Engoron verbally jousted throughout.
Trump was slapped with a gag order in the case and fined twice, after he made comments disparaging Engoron's staff. After it was temporarily lifted, a New York appeals court reinstated it after Trump made a post on his Truth Social account about the clerk.
