An appeals court in New York on Thursday reinstated the gag order against former President Donald Trump, which was suspended by a judge in mid-November in the fraud case that has been ongoing in this city since October.
This order was imposed on Trump in October, after the Republican tycoon attacked the assistant of the judge presiding over the trial, Arthur Engoron, via social media.
Trump also spoke in court about the case and these actions, which cost him 15 thousand dollars (about 13 thousand euros) in fines.
Trump’s lawyers challenged the order, and on November 16, an interim appeals court judge, David Friedman, lifted the silence order, citing concerns that it would violate free speech.
The reinstated gag order also applies to Trump’s lawyers.
In today’s ruling, the four judges of the state Appellate Division rejected the former president’s arguments that the order banning him from assaulting the judge’s legal secretary was unconstitutional, NBC station reported.
The judges also indicated that the gag order is necessary due to the ‘tidal wave’ of threats that came in against the judge’s assistant after Trump criticized her on social media.
Following today’s ruling, Judge Engoron indicated that he intends to enforce the silence orders “rigorously and vigorously.”
On December 17, the former president’s defense urged Judge Arthur Engoron to throw out the case immediately, arguing that it had irreparably harmed the Republican’s right to a fair trial through “surprising deviations from normal standards of impartiality’.
The lawyers cited statements against their client, the prominent role of the chief judicial officer, the judicial officer’s political donations and the fact that the judge shared articles about the case with former high school classmates.
“My chief judicial officer does not pronounce judgments or issue orders, I do,” Engoron wrote, adding: “My judgments are mine and mine alone.”
The lawsuit filed by Attorney General Letitia James alleges that Trump, his company and top executives inflated his fortune by billions of dollars in their financial statements, which were provided to banks, insurance companies and other entities to guarantee loans and close deals.
Trump and the other defendants have pleaded not guilty.
The tycoon, a favorite for the 2024 presidential nomination in the Republican Party, has long complained that the attorney general, the judge in the case and his chief justice, Allison Greenfield, are all from the Democratic Party.
Source: DN
