Former President Donald Trump took the stand during his civil fraud trial in New York on Wednesday, Oct. 26, as the judge fined him $10,000 for violating a gag order. The latest fine marks the second time Trump has been fined for violating the gag order, which prohibits him from disparaging court employees.
Judge Arthur Engoron imposed the gag order on Oct. 3, following a social media post of a photo of Engoron’s clerk with Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., that Trump published and falsely claimed the clerk was Schumer’s “girlfriend.”
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The judge had called Trump to the stand to question him about remarks he made on Wednesday, Oct. 25, to reporters, when the former president said the judge and person sitting next to him were “very partisan.”
Trump told the judge he was referring to his former attorney, Michael Cohen, who had been testifying against him.
The judge said he found Trump’s testimony “not credible,” and since he believed Trump was referring to his law clerk, that meant the former president had violated the gag order.
Trump first violated the gag order on Friday, Oct. 20, and was fined $5,000 after he posted disparaging comments on his platform Truth Social. In that instance, Judge Engoron wrote that he reserves the right to hold the former president in contempt of court.
“Make no mistake: future violations, whether intentional or unintentional, will subject the violator to far more severe sanctions, which may include steeper financial penalties, holding Donald Trump in contempt of court, and possibly imprisoning him,” Engoron wrote.
Trump is being accused of inflating his financial assets, and he has denied any wrongdoing.
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