Judge Fines Trump $10K For Blasting ‘Partisan’ Ex-Lawyer

The multiple criminal indictments against former President Donald Trump have long been seen by his supporters as a partisan effort to derail his 2024 bid for another term in the White House.

Now that he has been issued gag orders limiting his freedom to discuss the matter in public, his campaign has become even more hindered by the ongoing trials. 

This week, a judge determined that Trump violated one such order, which relates to fraud charges initiated by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

Following a recent court appearance, Trump complained to reporters about a “very partisan” person who had been seated next to Judge Arthur Engoron. Called on by the judge to address the remark, Trump reportedly said that it was a reference to his former attorney, Michael Cohen, who had been called as a witness — and not, as some had assumed, law clerk Allison Greenfield.

The gag order against him prohibited any disparaging remarks against the judge or officers of the court. 

Trump went on to deny he was referring to the clerk during a subsequent press briefing outside of the courtroom.

Despite his effort to explain the statement, Engoron nevertheless handed down a $10,000 fine for a perceived violation of the court order. That penalty came just days after the same judge fined Trump $5,000 for a prior social media post that criticized Greenfield.

Referencing a photo in which the clerk posed alongside Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Trump wrote: “Schumer’s girlfriends, Alison R. Greenfield, is running the case against me. How disgraceful! This case should be dismissed immediately.”

In response to that situation, Engoron asserted that additional breaches of the gag order could result in imprisonment.

“Make no mistake: future violations, whether intentional or unintentional, will subject the violator to far more severe sanctions,” the judge determined. 

Trump is also bound by a gag order put in place by Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is presiding over a federal trial related to the protest on Capitol Hill in early 2021.

“This is not about whether I like the language Mr. Trump uses,” that judge claimed. “This is about language that presents a danger to the administration of justice.”