New York’s top court upholds gag order against Trump in civil fraud trial
By Elizabeth Hartfield and Devan Cole, CNN
(CNN) — New York’s top court has dismissed an appeal from Donald Trump’s lawyers to remove the gag order placed on the former president in the New York Attorney General’s civil fraud trial.
New York’s appellate court had reinstated the order from Judge Arthur Engoron, which prohibited Trump and his attorneys from making public statements about the courtroom staff in the $370 million trial that wrapped up this month, in November, 2023.
Tuesday, the New York’s Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal, stating that “no substantial constitutional question is directly involved.”
The order, initially issued by Engoron in October, bars Trump from making public statements about court staff after Trump made numerous comments about a clerk, who the former president said is biased against him. The judge had twice fined Trump for violating the order.
The judge last year found that Trump is liable for fraud in the civil case, and he plans to issue a full decision in the bench trial by the end of this month on damages and six additional claims.
Trump’s lawyers have complained about the conduct of both the attorney general’s office and the judge and his clerk during the three-month trial – and they’ve already made clear they plan to appeal Engoron’s ruling.
This story has been updated with additional details.
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