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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Donald Trump Jr. resumes testimony

Donald Trump Jr. is back on the witness stand for his second day of testimony.

When he entered the courtroom, he briefly walked by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is seated in the first row of the court's gallery.

His entrance was followed by a brief photo opportunity for news photographers before court got underway.

After Trump Jr. quipped during yesterday's photo op that he should have worn makeup, Judge Engoron jokingly asked him during the photos this morning, "Did you remember for today?"


Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump arrive at courthouse

Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have arrived together at the New York State Supreme Courthouse for their testimony today.

Trump Jr. is scheduled to complete his testimony from yesterday, after which Eric Trump is scheduled to take the stand.

New York Attorney General Letitia James arrived shortly after the Trumps and took a seat in the courtroom.


Trump Jr. has helped run family's business for a 'long time,' AG says

As Donald Trump Jr. prepares to return to the witness stand this morning, New York Attorney General Letitia James says the Trump Organization executive VP has been been with the Trump Organization for a long time for someone who appears to have so little understanding of the business.

In a video posted to social media last night following Trump Jr.'s first day of testimony, James said the eldest son of former President Trump "claimed to have very little understanding of the accounting and legal mechanics of the family business -- but we know he has been involved in running the Trump Organization for a long time."

Trump Jr. testified yesterday that he relied on the expertise of others when he signed his father's statements of financial condition, distancing himself from the documents at the heart of the attorney general's case.

While he acknowledged that he had some of the "the most intimate knowledge" about some of the deals described in the statements, Trump Jr. reiterated that he did not have a role in putting the documents together.

"The accountants worked on it. That's what we pay them to do," Trump Jr. said.

Trump Jr. will return to the witness stand this morning, with his bother Eric Trump on deck to testify later today.


'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.


Trump financials cite phone calls that witness says didn't occur

Doug Larson's name appears across five years of Donald Trump's financial documents, according to records entered into evidence.

A longtime professional appraiser with the real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, Larson was cited in Trump Organization documents as an expert at valuing properties like 40 Wall Street, Trump Tower, and an adjoining retail space called "Niketown." Spreadsheets entered as evidence explicitly reference multiple phone calls with Larson between 2013 and 2017.

When asked about these phone calls in court, Larson testified that no such conversations occurred.

"Is it fair to say that Mr. Trump valued Trump Tower at $526 million in conjunction with you?" state attorney Mark Ladov asked Larson.

"No, that is incorrect," Larson said.

"Were you aware that Mr. McConney was citing you as a valuation source in his work papers?" Ladov asked.

"No, I was not," replied Larson, who said he did not assist Trump Organization executives in valuing Trump Tower, Niketown, or 40 Wall Street, despite Trump's paperwork referencing him as a source.

Evidence presented by the state instead suggested that the valuations were determined using cherry-picked metrics from a generic email Larson sent clients.

"It's a way to get your name out to clients for potential work," Larson said about one such "email blast" that was used in a Trump Tower valuation.

Larson added that the valuations Trump Organization executives determined based on "consultation" with him used flawed methodologies, such as using capitalization rates related to office buildings to appraise the retail Niketown building.

"It doesn't make sense," Larson said about Niketown's $287 million valuation.

"It's inappropriate and inaccurate," Larson said about the Trump Organization relying on his name to support their valuations. "I should have been told, and appraisals should have been ordered."