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.
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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
Judge asks for quiet after Trump responds to testimony
Trump, who has been sitting at the counsel table with his attorneys Chris Kise and Alina Habba, had a noticeable response when real estate appraiser Doug Larson denied having conversations with Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney about the value of Trump's 40 Wall Street property in 2013.
The former president made an inaudible comment, tapped on the table, and conferred with his lawyers.
That prompted state attorney Kevin Wallace to ask Judge Engoron to tell Trump to refrain from making comments.
"Can the defendant please stop commenting during the witness' testimony?" Wallace said. "I believe exhortations are audible on this side of the courtroom as well."
Engoron declined to specifically tell Trump to refrain from commenting, instead saying, "I will ask everyone to be quiet when the witness is testifying."
'You lied yesterday,' Trump attorney accuses witness
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, lawyers for Trump and New York Attorney General Letitia James engaged in a heated argument about whether an expert real estate appraiser committed perjury during his testimony yesterday.
"You lied yesterday, didn't you?" defense lawyer Lazaro Fields asked former Cushman & Wakefield real estate executive Doug Larson -- a line of questioning that prompted Larson to be excused from the courtroom while the attorneys sparred.
"This witness has rights and a lawyer in the room," Trump lawyer Chris Kise said, while lawyers for the state shouted "absurd" and "witness intimidation" from their chairs.
The squabble centered on Larson's testimony about whether he assisted the Trump Organization in determining capitalization rates to value their properties.
"Did you work with Mr. McConney in 2013 to determine the cap rate that he used to value his property?" state attorney Mark Ladov asked Larson yesterday, referring to Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney.
"No, I did not," Larson testified yesterday.
Fields attempted to contradict Larson's answer this morning by showing emails between McConney and Larson that suggested the two occasionally spoke about market conditions.
"Jeff McConney would call me, periodically, not frequently, to talk about sales and market conditions," Larson conceded.
But Larson denied having conversations with McConney about the value of Trump's 40 Wall Street property in 2013.
After a brief interruption, Fields presented a 2014 email where McConney asked Larson, "I hate to be a pest, but the accountants are coming in tomorrow to go over my valuations. Any chance you can answer my question below?"
Asked about that email, Larson acknowledged that McConney was using his information to support Trump Organization valuations in 2013.
It was at this point that Fields directly asked if Larson had lied yesterday, prompting the witness to be excused briefly.
"He perjured himself yesterday, in my opinion," Kise told the court.
"This is a performance … not a legal issue," Wallace countered.
"He was accused of perjury on the stand," Engoron noted before bringing Larson back into the courtroom.
While Larson still denied that he "worked with" McConney on the valuations, he ultimately conceded that he knew the information he provided was used to value Trump properties at the time -- seemingly contradicting his testimony yesterday.
"You knew in 2013 that Mr. McConney was using the information you sent him, mainly the capitalization rates, to value the Trump properties?" Fields said.
"I did," Larson said.
Trump returns for second day in a row
Former President Trump is back in court for the second day in a row.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is also attending the proceedings this morning.
Trump was met with a swarm of cameras on his way into the court, though the courtroom itself is half empty, largely filled with reporters and security officers.
Like yesterday, Trump is sitting at the counsel table between his attorneys Chris Kise and Alina Habba.
Trump expected back in court
Former President Trump is expected to be in court today for the second day in a row.
Lawyers for Trump have also suggested the former president plans to attend court during the testimony of his former lawyer Michael Cohen when Cohen eventually takes the stand.
Cohen delayed his testimony, which was originally scheduled to begin yesterday, due to a medical issue.
"[Trump] might have significant conflicts on 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 8th" of November, Trump attorney Chris Kise told Judge Engoron regarding Trump's schedule in relation to Cohen's testimony.
"We are still operating on the assumption of Monday at the earliest" for Cohen to begin his testimony, Engoron said, adding that Cohen had submitted a "fairly extensive doctor's note."
Trump attorney Alina Habba, citing a conflict, requested Cohen's testimony begin on Tuesday at the earliest.
State attorney Kevin Wallace said he would confer with Cohen on timing and provide a schedule update this week.
Judge fines Trump $354 million
Former President Donald Trump must pay $354 million for fraudulent business practices, Judge Arthur Engoron has ruled.
Trump's sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have been fined $4 million apiece, and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg has been fined $1 million.
The decision bars Trump barred from serving as an officer of a New York company for three years, and bars his sons for two years apiece.
Regarding the dissolution of Trump's companies, the decision says, "This Court hereby modifies its September 26, 2023, Decision and Order solely to the extent of removing the language ordering the LLCs cancellation en masse. The restructuring and potential dissolution of any LLCs shall be subject to individual review by the Court appointed Independent Director of Compliance in consultation with Judge Jones."
In his decision, Engoron wrote that "Defendants' refusal to admit error -- indeed, to continue it, according to the Independent Monitor -- constrains this Court to conclude that they will engage in it going forward unless judicially restrained."
"Overall, Donald Trump rarely responded to the questions asked, and he frequently interjected long, irrelevant speeches on issues far beyond the scope of the trial," the judge wrote. "His refusal to answer the questions directly, or in some cases, at all, severely compromised his credibility."
"The accountants created these 'compilations' based on data submitted by the Trump entities," the decision said. "In order to borrow more and at lower rates, defendants submitted blatantly false financial data to the accountants, resulting in fraudulent financial statements. When confronted at trial with the statements, defendants' fact and expert witnesses simply denied reality, and defendants failed to accept responsibility or to impose internal controls to prevent future recurrences."
Of Donald Trump Jr., Engoron wrote, "Despite disclaiming responsibility for or knowledge of the Statements of Financial Conditions' contents, Trump, Jr. still insisted that the Statements of Financial Condition were 'materially accurate.'"
Engoron's decision follows an 11-week civil trial in New York, where Trump and three of his adult children testified.
New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump, his two adult sons, and Trump Organization executives in September 2022 for issuing fraudulent financial statements -- including over 200 false and misleading asset values between 2011 and 2021 -- to get better loan terms and business deals.