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

The New York attorney general plans to call David Cerron, an assistant commissioner at the New York City Parks Department, to the witness stand later today.

Cerron is expected to testify about Donald Trump's arrangement to operate a golf course at Ferry Point Park in the Bronx, New York.

The attorney general claims that Trump's 2010 bid to operate the course relied on fraudulent financial statements.

"The award granting the Trump Organization the concession cites Mr. Trump's wealth as one basis for award, and the contract documents include a personal guaranty by Mr. Trump," according to the attorney general's complaint.

Former Trump Organization Vice President Raymond Flores is scheduled to return to the witness stand this morning.

Flores’ testimony, which began on Oct. 20, was postponed after a COVID-19 exposure delayed proceedings last week.

Flores was asked during his testimony earlier this month about his role in reviewing Trump’s financial statements and overseeing his golf courses, but said he could recall few details about his work in those areas.

Former President Donald Trump's lawyers have paid $15,000 to the New York Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection on behalf of the former president for his two gag order violations.

Judge Arthur Engoron fined Trump twice for violating his limited gag order prohibiting public statements about members of his staff.

Trump was fined $10,000 this week for a statement he made to reporters in court, which Engoron determined was in reference to his clerk. He was fined $5,000 last Friday for inadvertently keeping a Truth Social post -- which prompted the initial gag order -- on his campaign website after deleting it from his Truth Social account.

"Without waiving any rights or remedies, including, without limitation, any rights to appeal said orders, on behalf of our client, we enclose herewith a check from our attorney trust account in the amount of $15,000 in accordance with the court's orders," defense lawyer Alina Hanna wrote in a filing posted today.

Trump's lawyer Chris Kise signaled in court Thursday that Trump will likely appeal the most recent $10,000 violation.

State attorney Louis Solomon concluded his direct examination of tax lawyer Sheri Dillon after a series of questions about an appraisal of former President Donald Trump’s Seven Springs estate in New York.

A 2015 appraisal of the estate valued the entire property at $56.5 million, according to documents presented at trial, though Trump’s financial statements valued the property between $261 and $291 million from 2011 to 2021.

Dillon, who Judge Arthur Engoron deemed a hostile witness Thursday, struggled to recall with whom at the Trump Organization she might have discussed the appraisal. She added that she could not recall if she mentioned the appraisal in relation to the value of the estate in Trump’s financial statements.

“I have no idea if I told them the [appraised] value of the property,” Dillon testified. She later added, “It’s not like every Monday we talk about conservation easements.”