(USNewsBreak.com) – Former President Donald Trump’s legal woes continue. Not only has he been indicted four times and faces 91 charges, but he is also involved in a civil fraud trial in New York City that alleges he inflated his assets. As he usually does, Trump took to Truth Social to lament the case and pointed out that there was seemingly a connection between one of the court clerks and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). The judge in the case responded by slapping him with a gag order.
When Trump appeared in court on Tuesday, October 3, Judge Arthur F. Engoron issued a gag order after explaining that a defendant in the case — not naming the former president directly — took aim at one of his court staff. Such “personal attacks,” he said, “are unacceptable, inappropriate and [he] will not tolerate them under any circumstances.” Judge Engoron went further saying that Trump was ordered not to post on social media, email, or make public statements about any members of the court’s staff.
Judge in fraud trial imposes gag order after Trump attacks judge’s aide https://t.co/xTw9hailMr
— POLITICO (@politico) October 3, 2023
The comment stemmed from Trump’s post on Truth Social that called court clerk Allison Greenfield “Schumer’s girlfriend” and included a picture of the two. A closed-door meeting ensued and following that, the social media post was deleted.
At the heart of the fraud case are allegations that Trump and his employees provided inflated information to outside accountants who used the information to create financial statements. These statements were regularly provided to insurers, banks, and other parties.
Attorney General Letitia James is the one who brought the case against Trump and in addition to seeking $250 million in penalties, she’s looking to prohibit him from doing business in the state as well.
In his defense, Trump’s attorneys say that the luxury properties are largely undervalued and a disclaimer on the statements advises lenders to do their due diligence.
During the days following the gag order, Trump launched verbal attacks against the judge.
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