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Representative Elise Stefanik, a House Republican and close ally of Donald Trump, has filed a judicial ethics complaint against the judge presiding over the former president’s civil trial in New York. Stefanik said Judge Arthur Engoron showed “undue bias and judicial intemperance in the outrageous New York lawsuit” against Trump and the Trump Organization.
She also accused Engoron of using “weaponized justice” against Trump and called on the judge to withdraw from the case. Trump himself clashed with the judge when he testified Monday in the New York civil case against him. Engoron at one point ordered Trump’s lawyer to keep him under control. Engoron has also imposed a silence order on the former president, who has been fined twice for violating it.
Stefanik, a Republican from New York, wrote the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct to complain about the judge. Engoron had shown “clear judicial bias” against Trump, including telling Trump’s lawyer that the former president is “just a bad guy” that New York Attorney General Letitia James “should go after,” she wrote . She complained about his behavior, writing, “At the beginning of the trial, Judge Engoron infamously smiled and posed for the cameras.”
She also said the judge failed to respect Trump’s due process rights and illegally silenced Trump’s protected political speech. “All Americans, including political opponents, must receive due process and equal protection under our U.S. and New York Constitutions,” Stefanik wrote.
“Judge Engoron’s contempt for President Trump and his policies is clear, and the Commission must take corrective action to restore due process and protect our constitutional rights.” Judge Engoron must recuse himself from this case.” Attorney General James is seeking a $250 million fine against Trump and an order that neither he nor his two eldest sons – Don Jr. and Eric – can ever do business in New York again.
In the civil trial, Engoron, not a jury, will decide Trump’s fate. Engoron already ruled that Trump’s financial statements were full of fraud. This process is intended to determine the punishment. Don Jr., Eric and Ivanka all testified in the case. The prosecutor rested this week after Ivanka Trump’s testimony.
The defense has started its case. The process is expected to be completed around December 15. In their testimony last week, Ivanka’s brothers distanced themselves from the company. The two served as trustees of Trump Org after Donald Trump became president.
Don Jr. blamed the accountants who prepared the paperwork for him to sign in his role as trustee, saying his signature, which confirmed the accuracy of the financial records, was “not a symbol of yes or no.” Eric indicates that he was not involved in the preparation of the annual accounts and that he knew ‘nothing’ about them.
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