Trump loses bid to stay New York contempt of court order and avoid $10K daily fine
- Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday lost an effort at a New York appeals court to stay a contempt of court order, and as a result, still owes a fine of $10,000 per day.
- Trump was found in contempt for failing to comply with a subpoena from Attorney General Letitia James seeking records she wants for her civil probe of the Trump Organization.
- James is investigating allegations that the company improperly manipulated the stated valuations of real estate assets to obtain more favorable financial terms on loans, insurance and taxes.
Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday lost an effort at a New York appeals court to stay a contempt order, and as a result still owes a fine of $10,000 per day.
Trump on April 25 was found in contempt by Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron for failing to comply with a subpoena from New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is seeking records for her civil investigation of his company, the Trump Organization.
James is investigating allegations that the Trump Organization improperly manipulated the stated valuations of real estate assets to obtain more favorable financial terms on loans, insurance and taxes.
Engoron imposed the $10,000 daily fine until he was satisfied that Trump had complied with the subpoena.
The judge on Friday kept that fine and contempt order in place, saying that new affidavits by Trump and his lawyers, who claimed they could not find the documents being sought, were not sufficient proof of his compliance with the subpoena.
Trump's lawyer on Monday asked the Appellate Division of the First Judicial Department to stay Engoron's contempt order as he appeals the judge's finding. The lawyer, Alina Habba, argued in a filing that the contempt order was "unconscionable and indefensible."
That division rejected the stay request the next day, according to a written decision.
"Interim application denied," the division said the decision, which did not offer an explanation for the denial.
Trump's lawyer Alina Habba did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the decision Tuesday, which left her client owing $80,000 in contempt penalties to date.
Earlier Tuesday, the District of Columbia's attorney general announced that the Trump Organization and Trump's presidential inaugural committee had agreed to pay that city $750,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging those entities and the Trump hotel there illegally misused funds from the nonprofit committee to enrich the Trump family.
The Trump defendants did not admit wrongdoing as part of that settlement.
On Monday, a grand jury was seated in Atlanta as part of a criminal probe there into whether Trump violated the law by trying to get Georgia officials to overturn the 2020 presidential election in that state, which he lost to President Joe Biden.