Trump attorney Christopher Kise said Monday that the former President plans to testify a second time in his business fraud civil trial in Manhattan.
According to Kise, Trump will return to the witness stand on Monday, December 11.
New York State Attorney General Letitia James is suing Trump, his companies and its officers including Trump’s two adult sons over allegations of more than 200 instances bank, tax and insurance fraud over a 10-year period from 2011 to 2021.
Trump initially testified on November 6, following testimony from three of his adult children, Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and Ivanka Trump.
During his testimony, Trump clashed with New York State Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron, who had ordered the former President to keep his political answers to a minimum, saying, “please no speeches,” but was compelled to beseech Kise to “control your client” when Trump did not keep to the judge’s directive.
“I’m sure the judge will rule against me because he always rules against me,” Trump had said on the stand, claiming that the allegations against him were “well beyond the statute of limitations.”
Meanwhile, Trump’s team is appealing a gag order Engoron has levied in the case.
The former President’s attorneys told an appeals court on Monday that threats against the judge and his law clerk do not “justify” limiting Trump’s Constitutional right to defend himself.
Engoron issued the gag order after Trump targeted the judge’s principal law clerk by sharing a social media post that included her full name and a photo of her posing with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) as they both smiled. Trump’s posting falsely called the clerk “Schumer’s girlfriend” and accused her of “running this case against me.”
According to a court filing last week, Engoron’s clerk has been the target of a “deluge” of threats since Trump complained about her on social media, to the point where court officials have been prompted to work with “the FBI and Homeland Security to devise the appropriate security measures” for Engoron and his chamber staff, including the clerk.
There is no jury in Trump’s civil trial. This past September, Engoron issued a summary judgment in the civil suit, agreeing with James’ allegations that Trump and his company and officers did in fact commit business fraud during the decade in question.
The summary judgment resolved the key claim in James’ lawsuit, but the other claims remain, including the amount of damages that will be levied. The New York Attorney General is suing Trump and the other defendants for $250 million in penalties and a ban on Trump doing business in his home state.
According to Kise, Trump will be the final witness for the defense.
PHOTO: Trump with Attorneys Chris Kise and Alina Habba in NY Supreme Court
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