Donald J. Trump has twice run afoul of a narrow gag order placed on him by the judge overseeing his civil fraud trial in New York, and has been fined a total of $15,000.
It’s a rounding error for a former president who measures his net worth in the billions. But if Mr. Trump continues to violate the order, which bars him from attacking the judge’s staff, the punishments could intensify. The judge, Arthur F. Engoron, has warned of harsher fines, contempt of court and possible imprisonment.
“This court is way beyond the ‘warning’ stage,” Justice Engoron wrote last week when he levied the first $5,000 punishment, which he called “nominal.”
This week, when Mr. Trump appeared to criticize Justice Engoron’s law clerk to reporters, the judge summoned the former president to the witness stand. Mr. Trump denied that his veiled remarks had referred to the clerk, but in an order on Thursday, Justice Engoron fined Mr. Trump $10,000, and declared that his testimony “rings hollow and untrue.”
Mr. Trump must pay the first fine by early November — 10 days from when it was issued — and he has 30 days to pay the second.
The civil case stems from a lawsuit brought by the New York attorney general, Letitia James, who accused Mr. Trump of fraudulently inflating his net worth to receive better treatment from banks and insurers.
Mr. Trump is also contending with four criminal indictments — and a second gag order. The federal judge overseeing a criminal case in Washington, where Mr. Trump is accused of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, restricted his ability to target witnesses in the matter, prosecutors or her own court staff.
The judge, Tanya S. Chutkan, put the order on hold for a week while Mr. Trump appeals it. For now, Mr. Trump has not appealed Justice Engoron’s order, though a lawyer for Mr. Trump, Christopher M. Kise, said he was evaluating a potential appeal. “We have significant concerns about the constitutionality of limiting President…
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