Donald Trump can’t deliver closing arguments at New York fraud trial, judge says
- Judge nixed Donald Trump’s plan to deliver statement, a day ahead of closing arguments in trial that lasted almost 11 weeks
- Former US president is accused of inflating the value of his assets for more than a decade to get better terms on loans
Donald Trump cannot personally deliver a closing argument in his civil fraud trial, a New York judge said on Wednesday after the former US president’s lawyers did not agree to conditions that would prevent him from delivering a “campaign speech”.
The development comes a day before closing arguments in a case brought by New York’s attorney general that accuses Trump of inflating his net worth by billions of dollars to secure better loan terms.
Justice Arthur Engoron initially agreed to let Trump speak but reversed course after his lawyers did not agree to strict limits on what he could say, according to an email chain filed on the court’s docket.
“He may not deliver a campaign speech, and he may not impugn myself, my staff, plaintiff, plaintiff’s staff, or the New York State Court System, none of which is relevant to this case,” Engoron said.
Trump’s lawyer Chris Kise objected but did not agree to the terms by Engoron’s noon Wednesday deadline, the filing shows.
“Is anyone surprised any more?” another Trump lawyer, Alina Habba, said in a statement.