Former President Donald Trump, the leading U.S. Republican presidential candidate, appeared in court on the 2nd (local time).
Former President Trump personally attended a civil trial held this morning at the Manhattan District Court in New York City on suspicion of fraudulent loans related to himself, his sons, and his company.
Former President Trump did not have to attend this trial, but explained that he attended because “I wanted to see firsthand the witch hunt” against him.
He announced his intention to voluntarily appear in a post posted on his social media (SNS) ‘Truth Social’ the previous day, saying, “I will go to court tomorrow (2nd) morning and fight to protect my name and honor.”
This trial is a separate civil case unrelated to the four criminal trials in which former President Trump was indicted.
Former President Trump claimed that this trial was a ‘witch hunt’ and criticized New York State Attorney General Letitia James and the Prosecutor General, who filed the lawsuit, as well as Manhattan District Court Judge Arthur Engoron, who is in charge of his trial.
He met with reporters before entering the courtroom this morning, calling the trial a “scam” and “sham,” and asserted, “The largest witch hunt in history is continuing.”
He also took aim at Judge Engoron, saying, “We have a ‘rogue judge who has decided that he is only worth a small fraction of his actual worth.’ “We have a racist attorney general who is like a horror show running (for the governor’s election),” he criticized Attorney General James.
He said, “I didn’t commit a crime. He claimed, “Crimes are being committed against me,” and compared the brand value of ‘Trump’ with Coca-Cola, saying, “I created a great company. “I did not even reflect my best asset, the brand, in my books,” he said, refuting allegations of inflating assets.
Even when the trial was adjourned for lunch, former President Trump met with reporters and said, “This trial is purely a witch hunt aimed at interfering with the American election. “It is completely illegal,” he claimed.
He called Judge Engoron a Democrat and “an operative,” and directly attacked New York State Attorney General James, saying he was after him instead of violent criminals.
On the other hand, Secretary James, who filed a lawsuit against former President Trump and others, said in a press conference before the start of the trial that day, “Former President Trump and his co-defendants engaged in continuous and repeated fraud,” and “the court proved this in a summary judgment last week.” revealed. He also said that the amount of compensation would be decided in the trial that began today.
Minister James continued, “My message is simple. “No one is above the law, no matter how powerful they are or how much money they have,” he emphasized.
Previously, Secretary James said that former President Trump had increased the value of a number of assets, including a mansion in New York, high-end apartments, buildings, and golf courses in England and New York, to $2 billion (approximately 2.7 trillion won) for more than 10 years to facilitate bank loans. A civil suit was filed in New York state court in September last year, claiming that the report had been inflated.
Secretary James has requested that former President Trump and his children be banned from serving as executives or directors of New York companies and that a fine of $250 million (approximately 340 billion won) be imposed.
Depending on the outcome of the trial, former President Trump and his family may lose their right to do business in New York State.
Previously, through a summary judgment decision on the 26th of last month, before the formal trial began, Judge Engoron acknowledged some charges that former President Trump had committed fraud by inflating the value of his assets for bank loans, etc.
Summary judgment refers to a decision that the court makes before a formal trial on a matter where there is no dispute regarding important facts after the pre-trial proceedings are over and only a legal judgment remains. The court finds that former President Trump committed fraud before the formal trial. This is a judgment.
In this civil trial, Judge Engoron will make both factual and judicial decisions without a jury. In the formal trial, a judgment will be made on issues not addressed in the summary trial.
The formal trial, which began on this day, is scheduled to run until December, but the US media reports that it is likely to be concluded before then as Judge Engoron has already concluded the key issue of ‘fraud’.
Judge Engoron previously ordered last week that former President Trump could not exercise control over real estate owned in New York State.
Meanwhile, during the trial on this day, the image of former President Trump sitting in the defendant’s seat in the court was also revealed to the media.
Judge Engoron allowed reporters to take pictures for a few minutes after the trial began.
According to U.S. media, former President Trump sat between his lawyers in the courtroom, sitting with his arms crossed and an angry expression, occasionally shaking his head as he listened to the plaintiff’s lawyer, Kevin Wallace, and leaning down to whisper with the lawyers. It was also
CNN reported that former President Trump did not speak with Judge Engoron.
(Washington = News 1)
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.