Legal/Law/Criminal Justice and Reform

Donald Trump Appeals $454 Million New York Civil Fraud Trial Verdict

Former President Donald Trump has appealed a verdict by the New York Supreme Court that found him guilty of civil fraud and fined hundreds of millions of dollars.

Trump, the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, was ordered to pay the State of New York approximately $355 million on Feb. 16, a figure that was revised to $454 million, according to Democratic Attorney General Letitia James of New York, whose office sued Trump in the case. On Monday, Trump filed a notice of appeal with the New York Supreme Court’s Appellate Division, seeking to overturn the verdict.

“PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT…Defendants President Donald J. Trump, Donald Trump, Jr., Eric Trump, Allen Weisselberg, Jeffrey McConney, the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, the Trump Organization, Inc….hereby appeal to the Appellate Division, First Department, from the Decision,” wrote Trump’s attorneys in the notice of appeal. The trial verdict was issued by Justice Arthur F. Engoron of the New York Supreme Court’s Trial Decision, who had been previously criticized by Trump while presiding over the case.

Notice of Appeal by Donald J. Trump in People of the State of New York v. Trump, Et. Al. (Feb. 26, 2024) by Daily Caller News Foundation on Scribd

The verdict in the case was handed down after a trial beginning on Oct. 2 that was attended several times by Trump. He later testified in the trial in a chaotic session that saw Engoron chide him multiple times to conform to the court’s rules, though was later allowed to deliver his testimony without interruption.

“The fraud is on the court, not on me,” Trump said, according to CNN. “This is not a political rally,” Engoron responded to Trump’s attacks while on the stand.

The verdict and subsequent appeal is one of many civil and criminal proceedings that implicate Trump. He is presently under indictment on dozens of state felony charges in New York City and Miami — regarding allegedly falsified business records and his possession of highly classified documents after leaving office — as well as in Washington, D.C., and Fulton County, Georgia, which concern his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Additionally, Trump is currently involved in litigation at the Supreme Court of the United States regarding the decisions of state authorities in Colorado and Maine to disqualify him from the ballot in the 2024 presidential election, based on Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment, and is petitioning the court for a writ of certiorari regarding his Washington, D.C. indictment to claim constitutional immunity from prosecution.

Furthermore, Trump was ordered to pay $83 million to E. Jean Carroll as damages for defamation following his criticism of her after she successfully sued him for an alleged sexual assault in the 1990s, where he was ordered to pay her $5 million.

The New York Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.