Former President Trump will not be allowed to make his own closing argument in a New York civil fraud trial after his lawyers refused assurances that they would stick to issues “relevant” to the case.
The day before scheduled closing arguments, Judge Arthur Engoron told Trump's lawyers that the former president would not speak in court.
Email exchanges between Mr. Engoron and Mr. Trump's lawyer published in the case docket showed a heated exchange over what kind of comments Mr. Trump was allowed to make.
Last week, President Trump's lawyer Chris Kiss informed Engoron's chief law clerk that three lawyers and the former president himself planned to give closing remarks. Hours later, a lawyer from the New York attorney general's office issued a firm objection.
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Engoron responded that he would allow closing arguments if President Trump promises on the record to “limit the scope” to what his lawyers are allowed to do in closing arguments.
“He may not be willing to introduce new evidence. He may not 'testify.' He may not comment on unrelated matters,” Engoron wrote in an email. “In particular, without limitation, he may not make any campaign speech or disparage me, my staff, the plaintiffs, the plaintiffs' staff, or the New York State court system, none of which are relevant to this case. You can't blame everything, except for the comments to my staff, which can and has been done in other forums. ”
Engoron went on to say that if Trump violates the rules, he will not hesitate to “cut him off mid-sentence and give him a warning,” or end his closing argument and ban him from speaking in court any further. He said it would be.
Engoron told court officials to “immediately” remove Trump from the courtroom if Trump violates the gag order Engoron imposed at the beginning of the trial, which prohibits Trump and his lawyers from commenting on the judicial staff. He said he would order a ban on payments of at least $50,000. .
Mr. Kise responded that President Trump could not agree to the terms proposed by Mr. Engoron, saying they contained “a lot of ambiguity and there is considerable potential for misunderstandings and unintended violations.”
Several more emails were subsequently sent between Mr. Kise and Mr. Engoron, in which Mr. Kise informed the court that Mr. Trump's mother-in-law had died and asked for a delay in closing remarks. Some of the claims were denied by Engoron. The judge reiterated that his condition had not changed.
“This is extremely unfair, Your Excellency,” Kise said in a Jan. 10 email. “We are not allowing President Trump, who has been unfairly degraded and belittled by an out-of-control and politically motivated attorney general, to say what he needs to say.”
“We won't discuss this anymore. Take it or leave it. Now or forever,” Engoron replied. “He now has seven minutes until noon. No further extensions will be granted.”
Kise did not respond, so Engoron asked that Trump be barred from making closing arguments.
“Is anyone else surprised?” Alina Habba, President Trump's lawyer and legal spokeswoman, said in a statement.
The judge has been at odds with Trump and his lawyers throughout the lawsuit. Before the trial began, Mr. Engoron found Mr. Trump and his co-defendants liable for fraud, and determined that the New York attorney general's office had proven the core of the case. New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) sued Trump in 2022, accusing him of falsely altering his net worth in key financial statements to collect tax and insurance benefits.
On the stand, Trump insulted Engoron and the state's attorney general, calling them “Trump haters,” “frauds,” “political hacks,” and trying to prevent him from winning a second term in the White House. .
Closing remarks are scheduled to take place Thursday, giving both sides two hours and 15 minutes to make their final presentations to the judge. Engoron is overseeing the court trial without a jury and could issue a verdict by the end of the month.
Updated at 1:57 p.m.
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