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Election 2024
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Election 2024



TRUMP ASSAILS HIS FRAUD TRIAL IN COURTROOM SPEECH AS CASE WINDS DOWN

By Shayna Jacobs
and 
Mark Berman
Updated January 11, 2024 at 7:16 p.m. EST|Published January 11, 2024 at 6:27
p.m. EST

An artist's depiction of Trump Organization defense attorney Christopher Kise,
center, during closing statements to Judge Arthur Engoron in New York Supreme
Court in Manhattan on Thursday. At left is former president Donald Trump.
(Elizabeth Williams/AP)

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NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial wound down Thursday with closing
statements in the case, which accuses the former president of exaggerating the
values of his properties and other assets to secure better financial terms.


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While much of the day unfolded in conventional fashion — with lawyers from both
sides using their allotted time to offer summaries of the case — Trump was
allowed to interrupt that rhythm shortly before lunchtime to deliver an extended
disquisition, excoriating the judge, the entire case and New York Attorney
General Letitia James, who filed the lawsuit and is seeking a $370 million
penalty.



“Your honor, look. I did nothing wrong,” Trump said during his remarks, which
lasted about six minutes. “They should pay me for what we’ve had to go through.”

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The trial, which began a little more than three months ago, follows a lawsuit
that James brought in 2022 against Trump, his namesake business and some of his
adult children. The lawsuit accuses Trump and his business of misstating values
and basic facts about properties in financial statements to get better terms
from bankers and lenders from 2011 to 2021.

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ONGOING INVESTIGATIONS INVOLVING DONALD TRUMP

arrow leftarrow right
Donald Trump is facing historic legal scrutiny for a former president. He has
been indicted on 78 felony charges in two federal cases and one state case and
is under investigation elsewhere. He has denied all wrongdoing. Here is a list
of the key probes and where they stand.
Manhattan district attorney’s investigation
Trump has been indicted on 34 felony charges following an investigation by
District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) of business matters involving Trump, including
his alleged role in hush money payments to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels
during the 2016 campaign. The trial has been scheduled for March 2024.
Mar-a-Lago classified documents investigation
Trump has been indicted on 40 felony charges after FBI agents found more than
100 classified documents during a search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on Aug.
8 as part of a criminal probe into possible mishandling of classified
information. The trial has been scheduled for May 2024.
Justice Dept. criminal probe of Jan. 6
Trump has been indicted on four felony charges. Prosecutors are focusing on the
Jan. 6, 2021, riot and whether Trump or his aides conspired to obstruct
Congress’s certification of the 2020 election or committed fraud to block the
peaceful transfer of power. Prosecutor Jack Smith is also overseeing the
Mar-a-Lago investigation.
Georgia election results investigation
Former president Donald Trump and 18 others were criminally charged in
connection with efforts to overturn Joe Biden’s 2020 win in Georgia. The
indictment follows a 2½-year investigation by Fulton County District Attorney
Fani T. Willis (D). The grand jury issued arrest warrants for those charged, and
they have until noon on Aug. 25 to voluntarily surrender.
Lawsuit over Trump business practices in New York
Attorney General Letitia James (D) filed a lawsuit Sept. 21 against Trump, some
of his children and the Trump Organization, accusing them of flagrantly
manipulating property valuations to get tax breaks and better terms on loans and
insurance policies. A trial is scheduled for October.

1/6

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Trump and his attorneys say no one was defrauded and deny any wrongdoing. Trump,
the leading contender for the Republican presidential nomination this year, has
repeatedly accused James, a Democrat, of being politically motivated.

The case appears to have struck a nerve with Trump, who has long touted himself
as a titan of business and real estate. Trump has repeatedly attended the
proceedings when he was not obligated to do so, periodically pausing in the
courtroom hallway to address reporters and belittle James and the lawsuit and
defend his business experience.

New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, who is hearing the case without a
jury, already ruled before the trial began that Trump and his company broadly
committed fraud. Engoron will determine whether any illegal acts occurred during
the process, and he will also decide any penalties.

New York Attorney General Letitia James said on Jan. 11 that she trusts "justice
will be done" in her civil fraud case against former president Donald Trump.
(Video: AP)

James is seeking a $370 million penalty in the case and has asked that Trump and
his sons be prohibited from serving as corporate executives in New York. She
also requested that an independent monitor be appointed to oversee the Trump
Organization and has requested strict limitations on its ability to obtain new
loans or new assets.

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“This case has never been about politics or personal vendetta or about
name-calling,” James said after the proceedings concluded Thursday. “This case
is about the facts and the law. And Mr. Donald Trump violated the law.”

Speaking on Thursday morning — not long after a bomb threat was reported at his
home — Engoron thanked attorneys on both sides of the case for their work. His
decision in the case is expected to come in a written form, and the judge said
he hoped to issue it by Jan. 31.

Christopher Kise, an attorney for Trump, said during his closing remarks that
James was “weaponizing” a statute to go after the former president. Kise said
James was politically driven, and disputed the idea that Trump cheated anyone.
There were no complaints, Kise noted, and no banks sued Trump over any of the
loans involved in the case.

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“You just cannot allow the attorney general to pursue a victimless fraud and
impose the corporate death penalty,” Kise said.

Testifying in fraud case, Trump clashes with judge and draws reprimands

Kevin Wallace, an attorney with James’s office, said the Trump side had only
offered stale arguments that courts have already rejected. “The most critical
acts are undisputed,” Wallace said.

The trial highlighted some inconsistent methodologies Trump’s company used while
compiling financial statements. In one case, a penthouse was falsely valued as
if it were about three times its actual size. In another, a Manhattan apartment
building was valued as if all units could be sold at market rate, even though a
number of apartments were rent-stabilized and could not be sold.

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On Thursday, James’s office sought to tie Trump directly to those records.
Andrew Amer, an attorney with her office, said Trump certified the accuracy of
the financial statements at issue and “had motive to inflate his net worth.”

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Wallace said the loans Trump got were “absolutely critical” to the company.
Getting beneficial interest rates that were “secured by fraud [was] vital to the
company’s operations and also for the run for president,” Wallace said. The
defendants were “doing the rich man’s version of searching the cushions for
change.”

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In November, Trump clashed with the judge while testifying, dismissing Engoron’s
pretrial ruling as wrong and saying he was facing “a very unfair trial.”

How candidate Trump’s claims boost legal risks for defendant Trump

Engoron admonished Trump during that testimony, saying it was “not a political
rally,” and urged Kise to control his client. The judge had also issued a
limited gag order early in the trial blocking Trump from commenting on Engoron’s
staff after Trump posted a photograph of Engoron’s law clerk on social media.
Engoron has twice fined Trump for violating the order, penalizing him a combined
$15,000.

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This month, Trump’s attorneys alerted the judge that their client wanted to
speak during closing statements. In an email exchange made public this week,
Engoron said he would allow Trump to speak if he would commit to only discussing
the issues raised in the case.

Kise replied that Trump “cannot agree” to the restrictions and called them “very
unfair.” Engoron then issued a deadline for Kise to “take it or leave it,” and
no response was included in the email chain that was released. Engoron also
denied an emailed request from Kise to postpone Thursday’s proceedings because
of the recent death of Trump’s mother-in-law.



On Thursday in court, Kise revived his request for Trump to be able to speak as
part of his side’s closing remarks. Engoron asked if Trump would agree to stick
to subjects related to the case, echoing his emailed request. Instead of
answering directly, Trump launched into a speech from his seat in the courtroom.

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“What’s happened here, sir, is a fraud on me,” Trump said. “If I’m not allowed
to talk about [the political motivation] — it really is a disservice. I would
say that’s a big part of the case. I would say it’s 100 percent.”

Engoron asked Kise to “please control your client,” but Kise did not appear to
make any effort to do so. Engoron audibly sighed and gave Trump one minute to
wrap up his remarks.

“I know this is boring to you,” Trump said. “You have your own agenda. You can’t
listen for more than one minute.”

Engoron also challenged Trump on a claim that he had never been in trouble with
banks before.

“By the way, you said you’ve never had a problem — haven’t you been sued
before?” Engoron said.

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“I should have won it every time,” Trump replied.

After Trump spoke, Engoron said the defense had used its allotted time and that
the court would break for lunch. Later in the afternoon, Trump spoke to
reporters, repeating his complaints about James and the case.

The New York case is a civil matter, not criminal, so nobody faces possible time
behind bars as a result. Trump has also been charged in four separate criminal
cases in New York, D.C., Florida and Georgia. He has denied wrongdoing in all of
those cases, as well.

Berman reported from Washington. Wesley Parnell in New York and Amy B Wang and
Maegan Vazquez in Washington contributed to this report.

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