Former President Donald Trump has been held in contempt of court after the New York AG and the judge in the case determined that he had not turned over all the documents that they had asked for. Trump will be fined $10,000 daily until said documents are handed over to the AG’s office.
On Monday, Judge Arthur Engoron heard arguments that Trump should be held in contempt for not turning over documents related to the Trump Organization, suspected of manipulating property values to obtain loans and tax deductions, which is criminal fraud.
Trump was ordered to turn over the documents early this year after he failed to get the subpoena thrown out. The court gave Trump until March 3 to comply and later extended it to March 31.
Judge Engoron stated:
“Mr. Trump, I know you take your business seriously, and I take mine seriously, I hereby hold you in civil contempt and fine you $10,000 a day.”
The New York Attorney General, Letitia James, had requested that the court to hold the former President in contempt for failing to produce the documents.
Trump has been fighting James in court over her probe into his business affairs, which he calls a politically motivated “witch hunt.” Trump attorney Alina Habba argued in court that “Donald Trump does not believe he is above the law,” and that the ruling will be appealed:
“We respectfully disagree with the court’s decision. All documents responsive to the subpoena were produced to the attorney general months ago.”
James claims that Trump’s family company has a long history and pattern of misleading banks and tax officials about the value of many of their properties.
James released a statement in response to the ruling:
“Today, justice prevailed. For years, Donald Trump has tried to evade the law and stop our lawful investigation into him and his company’s financial dealings. Today’s ruling makes clear: No one is above the law.”
