NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: A judge's admonition to former president Donald Trump during his ongoing civil fraud trial sent waves across social media, with critics of the former president celebrating the incident.
Judge Arthur Engoron, who was presiding over the trial, reportedly warned Trump and others to keep their voices down after Trump conversed animatedly with his lawyers while a witness, real estate appraiser Doug Larson, testified against him on the trial's second day.
Judge's order to keep voices down
State lawyer Kevin Wallace had requested the judge to intervene, stating that the defense's comments were audible on the witness's side and could potentially influence the testimony. "Particularly if it's meant to influence the testimony," Judge Engoron instructed.
Trump, who is the 2024 Republican frontrunner, was present in court for a second consecutive day. He has been closely watching the trial, which threatens to impact his real estate empire and wealthy businessman image.
Previously, he had attended the first three days but skipped the prior week to give a deposition in an unrelated lawsuit.
In a pretrial decision last month, Judge Engoron ruled that Trump and his company, the Trump Organization, had committed years of fraud by inflating asset values and net worth on annual financial statements.
"Values were not wrong — it's what we knew at the time," appraiser Doug Larson said as he defended his assessment.
As a penalty, Engoron ordered a court-appointed receiver to take control of some Trump companies, casting doubt on the future of properties like Trump Tower. However, an appeals court temporarily blocked this ruling.
Trump's frustration was evident during the courtroom exchange when his lawyer Lazaro Fields accused Larson of lying.
This led to a confrontation between the defense and state sides, with Trump's lawyer Christopher Kise suggesting that Larson could be at risk of perjury. State lawyer Colleen Faherty labeled this as "witness intimidation."
"See what's happened? The government lied. They just lie. They didn't reveal all of the information that they had," Trump told reporters during a court break.
“They didn’t reveal all the evidence that made me totally innocent of anything that they say,” he added.
Social media reactions
Critics of Trump, however, seized the moment on social media, celebrating the fact that he was silenced by the judge with a barrage of memes and reactions.
"Trump, the maestro of theatrics, finds himself silenced in court. How the mighty have fallen! From presidential power to courtroom hushings, a true Shakespearean tragedy. The courtroom drama unfolds, proving that even kings must heed the judge's gavel," one social media user posted on X.
"Well, a raging narcissist like Mr. Trump and habitual liar, doesn’t like being told he’s wrong," another wrote.
"Something he's not used to," someone else added.
Ongoing legal battles
Trump's civil trial involves six unresolved claims from New York Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit, including allegations of conspiracy, insurance fraud, and falsifying business records.
Notably, the case will be decided by Judge Engoron as the state law does not permit a jury in this type of lawsuit.
This incident adds to the ongoing tension between Trump and Judge Engoron, who has issued a limited gag order in the past and fined Trump $110,000 for being slow to respond to a subpoena from James' office, according to PBS.
Trump, however, expressed mixed feelings about the judge outside the courtroom, suggesting that he felt Democrats were “pushing him around like a pinball." He added, “It’s a very unfair situation that they put me in."
