In his civil fraud case, a New York judge on Friday dealt a devastating defeat to Donald J. Trump, ruling that the former president was guilty of plotting to abuse his net worth and imposing a fine of about $355 million, plus interest, which may completely deplete his financial reserves.
Justice Arthur F. Engoron’s ruling ends a chaotic, multi-year legal proceeding in which the attorney general of New York tried Mr. Trump’s ludicrous claims to wealth. Without a jury, Justice Engoron had all the authority, and he used it well: the court imposed a wide range of penalties that posed an imminent danger to the former president’s commercial empire while he faced four separate criminal prosecutions and attempts to retake the White House.
For 3 years, Justice Engoron prohibited Mr. Trump from holding senior positions at any New York-based business, including parts of his personal Trump Organization. In addition, he sentenced the former president’s teenage sons to pay over four million dollars each and placed them under a two-year ban. The decision puts questions regarding whether any of the family members can manage the company going forward, with Eric Trump becoming the de facto CEO.
As per the attorney general, Letitia James, the judge additionally mandated that they spend a significant amount of interest, increasing the punishment for the former president to $450 million.
Judge Engoron admonished Mr. Trump and the rest of the defendants for years of not coming clean about their wrongdoing in an unorthodox manner. He stated, “Their total lack of regret and repentance verges on the pathological.”
In addition to acknowledging that Mr. Trump had not engaged in violent criminal activity, he said, “Donald Trump is not Bernard Madoff.” “Defendants are unable to accept the mistakes of their ways,” he wrote despite this.
Although Mr. Trump plans to defend the financial penalty, he needs to provide the required funds or obtain a bond within 30 days. Since the majority of his success is in real estate, which is worth significantly more overall than the fine, the verdict won’t make him bankrupt.