Closing arguments concludes in Trump civil fraud trial in New York
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Former President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media as he arrives at the New York State Supreme Court during the civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization in New York City on Jan. 11, 2024.Timothy A. Clary / AFP via Getty Images -
Former President Donald Trump departs for a break in the civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization in New York City in December.Timothy A. Clary / AFP via Getty Images
Closing arguments were given today in a civil fraud trial that alleges former President Donald Trump lied about his wealth. A final decision from New York Judge Arthur Engoron is expected in the coming weeks.
Trump and his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump are accused of knowingly committing fraud by submitting financial statements that inflated the value of their properties and other assets. The lawsuit alleges that from 2011 to 2021, Donald Trump and his organization created more than 200 false valuations to inflate his net worth by billions of dollars with the goal of getting better business, insurance and banking deals.
New York Attorney General Letitia James' legal team is urging the judge to impose a $370 million penalty, up from an original $250 million, and to limit Trump's ability to conduct business in New York state.
In closing statements, Trump's legal team focused on two arguments: Trump and his associates had nothing to do with the creation of the fraudulent statement condition and, regardless, there is no victim.
The former president was present in the morning, arriving after campaigning in Iowa. Despite originally saying he wouldn't, Engoron allowed Trump to speak for five minutes during which Trump argued the trial was a political witch hunt. He reiterated this claim during a press conference Thursday afternoon.
"They don't have any evidence against us," Trump said. "Millions and millions of pages, years of litigation and all politically motivated."
James' legal team laid out how they believe the fraud was "central to the operations of the Trump Organization's business" and claimed that the money he got through low interest rates even helped fund Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.
"This case has never been about politics or personal vendetta or about name calling," James said after the hearing was adjourned. "This case is about the facts and the law and Mr. Donald Trump violated the law."
What has happened so far
Engoron has already determined that there was fraud and that the former president, his sons and other executives are liable.
Throughout the trial, legal teams have argued over whether or not notable Trump properties, such as Manhattan's Trump Tower and 40 Wall Street, were valued incorrectly on purpose.
Documents shown during trial ranged from spreadsheets of the valuations to signed financial statements. The attorney general's legal team demonstrated inflations such as when the Trump Tower triplex was marked as being almost 11,000 square feet in 1994, then later as 30,000 square feet. A Forbes magazine article originally shed light on the discrepancy in 2017.
The former president and three of his children, Donald Jr., Eric and Ivanka, all took the stand to testify about the valuation process and their involvement. Testifying in November, Trump argued the estimated property values were actually conservative, and he said that he relied on others to compile the statements. His two sons also testified they similarly relied on others, such as their accounting firm, to come up with the numbers — even as emails and documents showed they ultimately approved them.
In closing briefs submitted last week, the Trump legal team doubled down on the argument that Eric, Donald Jr. and Donald Trump did not have knowledge or involvement in the creation, preparation or use of the fraudulent financial statements.
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Transcript
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
First to New York City, where, in a surprise move, former President Donald Trump addressed the court today during closing arguments in his $370 million fraud trial. This came during a daylong summation where Trump's lawyers said the New York attorney general had not proven her case. The AG said that fraud was central to the operations of the Trump Organization. NPR's Andrea Bernstein was in the New York courthouse as all this action took place. She is with us now. Hey there.
ANDREA BERNSTEIN, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise.
KELLY: OK, I'm confused. How did Trump end up addressing the court today after a judge had ruled he couldn't do that?
BERNSTEIN: So earlier this week, Trump's lawyers wrote to the judge saying the former president wanted to speak. And the judge said, well, OK, if Trump promises to follow the rules - that is, stick to the law and the facts and not disparage anyone. And Trump said no. So the judge said he can't speak.
KELLY: But then he did.
BERNSTEIN: Just before lunch break, when we were already in overtime, in the defense's summations, Trump lawyer Chris Kise stood up asking for permission for Trump to address the court. This is not how it should have been done, Judge Arthur Engoran said. And then Trump just started to speak. He said, quote, "I am an innocent man. I have been persecuted by somebody running for office," referring to the New York attorney general, Letitia James, a Democrat.
KELLY: OK. So did the judge - what did the judge say? Did he sanction Trump in any way?
BERNSTEIN: After a diatribe against the attorney general, Trump started in on the judge saying, you have your own political agenda, at which point the judge turned to Trump's lawyer and said, Mr. Kise, control your client. Trump abruptly stopped, walked out and then, a little bit later, held a news conference where he repeated many of the themes he raised in court.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
DONALD TRUMP: They don't have any facts. They don't have any evidence against us. Millions and millions of pages, years of litigation and all politically motivated.
KELLY: Andrea, just setting aside who spoke and who was allowed to speak and all the rest of it, what was the substance of the arguments you heard today? Start with the defense.
BERNSTEIN: Essentially this from the defense - the banks and insurance companies who were given the false statements didn't complain. They made money. There were no victims and that Trump was so successful it didn't matter anyway. A bit of context here - before all this happened, Trump could not get a loan from any reputable U.S. banks 'cause he had defaulted so many times. So the idea that Trump might be a risk and destabilize markets isn't exactly theoretical.
KELLY: And then what did the New York attorney general's office say? What did they argue?
BERNSTEIN: Up to now, the AG has been unrolling evidence in bits - lies about appraisals, available cash, etc. Today, they all - sewed it all up, arguing the fraud was central to the operations of Trump Organization's business. Getting every one of these loans was absolutely critical to the defendants, they said. What they were arguing is that when Trump was getting ready to run for president, he got these loans that he shouldn't have to pump up his business, and then actually used some of the money for his so-called self-financed 2016 campaign.
KELLY: And, quickly, when might we see a verdict?
BERNSTEIN: The judge says we'll see a verdict by January 31. And there's another trial starting on Tuesday, the second defamation case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll.
KELLY: NPR's Andrea Bernstein, thank you so much.
BERNSTEIN: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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