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

Longtime Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney continued to value Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club in excess of $500 million -- on the basis that the property could be sold as private residences -- despite knowing that Trump has signed a deed in 2002 with the National Trust for Historic Preservation exclusively limiting the property to being used as a club.

"Mr. Trump had deeded away his rights to use the property for any purpose other than a social club," state attorney Andrew Amer said while questioning McConney, who initially claimed he was unaware of the requirement but subsequently testified that he was aware of the 2002 deed.

Despite the requirement, McConney -- according to Trump's financial statements -- valued Mar-a-Lago as if the property could be sold as individual residences, every year that he oversaw the statements, between 2011 and 2017.

When the Trump Organization purchased their golf course in Jupiter, Florida, in 2013, they paid $5 million for the club, longtime Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney testified.

But when they put the property in their books, they listed the purchase price at $46 million, said McConney.

The $41 million jump in price was attributed to the potential that Trump would have to pay back the purported "refundable" fees paid by each of the club's members, according to McConney.

While listing $46 million as the total purchase price, the Trump Organization failed to account for the $41 million dollars in fees on the liability side of the company's books, said state attorney Andrew Amer.

"Even if they do have to repay at some point in time, that is way out in the future, correct?" Amer asked, which McConney conceded was the case.

In 2013, the Trump Organization increased the value of Trump National Golf Club Westchester in Briarcliff Manor, New York, based on the planned addition of 71 midrise housing units, state attorney Andrew Amer said during his questioning of longtime Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney.

The company said the units, when built, would be worth $101 million -- even though the company was given an appraisal by real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield that put the value of the units at $43.3 million, Amer said.

"The value remained the same in 2015, based on a telephone conversation that you had with Eric Trump on Nov. 17, 2015, where Eric Trump said to you, 'Leave value as is,'" Amer asked McConney.

"Correct," McConney answered.

"So notwithstanding that there was this appraisal, Eric Trump told you to leave the value as is?" Amer repeated.

"Correct," McConney replied.

McConney also testified that at some point, he and former Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg added a 30% "brand premium" to the valuations of some of Trump's golf properties.

New York Attorney General Letitia James argued that Donald Trump's legal team is trying to "sow chaos" by pausing the ongoing trial, and that a pause would risk creating a "cascade of delays" to Trump's multiple legal matters, according to a letter filed by the AG after Trump sought to stay the proceedings.

"Defendants cannot come close to demonstrating that the equities or the merits favor the truly extraordinary relief of upending an ongoing trial midstream," James wrote.

James argued that the request to pause the trial while awaiting the appeal of the judge's partial summary judgment issued last week would be unreasonably disruptive to both parties and the witnesses scheduled to testify in the case.

"And tellingly, they waited until after Mr. Trump decided to stop attending the trial," the letter said. "Defendants have thus sought to interrupt trial midcourse in a highly disruptive manner, and this Court should deny an interim stay on that basis alone."

James also accused Trump's legal team of attempting to "play one court against the other," by pitting his civil matter against the schedule of Trump's other pending cases.

The former president, over the next seven months, faces criminal trials in the Georgia election interference case, the federal election interference case, the New York hush money case, and the federal classified documents case.