Video footage of a surly Donald Trump in a courtroom on Tuesday went viral on social media.
The civil fraud lawsuit endangering the former president’s real estate empire stems from a lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
In a pretrial ruling in September, Judge Arthur Engoron resolved the lawsuit’s main complaint, finding that Trump and his company routinely misled banks, insurers and others by exaggerating the price of assets in their annual financial statements, which were used to secure loans and make deals.
The $250 million lawsuit relates to other allegations of conspiracy, insurance fraud and falsifying business records. Trump, who is leading in polls for the 2024 Republican nomination, has denied any wrongdoing.
He didn’t seem very pleased to be in the tribunal. pic. twitter. com/w0Hv66h1NO
He is scheduled to testify until later in the trial, but attended the first three days of last week and returned Tuesday to see outside counsel and a worker testify against him, as well as attacking James in front of the news cameras outside. . the courtroom.
“He didn’t seem very pleased to be in court today,” wrote Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of liberal media outlet Meidas Touch, along with a brief clip of Trump in court on X, formerly Twitter, which amassed more information. More than a million perspectives so far.
Another clip of Trump in the courtroom with a somber expression on his face, aired on Fox News, shared via journalist Aaron Rupar on X, where it has been viewed more than 145,000 times.
Outside the courtroom, Trump said the case was “an embarrassment,” arguing that his assets were undervalued.
He used the legal formula “corrupt” and James a “radical madman. “
“We’ve worked hard, my family. My kids are worried about this and shouldn’t be. They don’t deserve to worry about this. It’s a witch hunt run by a radical, crazy attorney general,” Trump said.
Trump “may lie, but the numbers don’t lie,” James said after the trial, the Associated Press reported.
Images of Trump and A. G. James this morning pic. twitter. com/vLjEIPEkt8
“He can insult me, he can distract me,” she added, but “his total empire was based on nothing, lies and quicksand. “
After its ruling on the lawsuit’s main claim, Engoron issued a ruling revoking Trump’s business licenses and appointing a court-appointed receiver to run his companies, what legal experts called “the death penalty for businesses. “
An appeals court later rejected Trump’s proposal to continue the trial but agreed to sideline it from its business operations for the time being.
Trump also faces 91 charges in four criminal cases in Washington, D. C. , New York, Florida and Georgia. He denied any wrongdoing in the case.
Newsweek reached out to an attorney for Trump and James’ office for further comment via email.
Khaleda Rahman is Newsweek’s senior journalist founded in London, UK. It focuses on abortion rights, race, education, sexual abuse, and capital punishment. Khaleda joined Newsweek in 2019 and in the past worked at MailOnline in London, New York and Sydney. He is a graduate of University College London. Languages: English.
You can contact Khaleda by emailing k. rahman@newsweek. com