The New York attorney general on Tuesday asked a judge to sanction former US President Donald Trump, his adult children, the Trump Organization and their attorneys for their responses to their civil lawsuit for $250 million fraud in his against.
Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit last September accused the defendants of participating in a decade-long scheme to manipulate the values of Trump’s assets and net worth in order to induce banks and insurers to offer better conditions.
On January 26, the defendants filed formal “answers” in which, as is often the case in similar lawsuits, they denied or claimed they lacked sufficient knowledge of dozens of substantive allegations.
In a letter to the Manhattan judge overseeing the case, Arthur Engoron, James said many responses were “patently false,” frivolous or improper. She said the Trumps should lose some of their defenses, as well as face sanctions.
“The court has already warned the defendants and their attorneys for their continued invocation of meritless legal claims, but exercised its discretion in not imposing such sanctions,” the letter said. “It doesn’t seem like this point has been taken.”
Lawyers for the Trump defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
James said inappropriate responses included Trump’s objection to being labeled the “inactive chair” of the Trump Organization during his White House tenure, though he had used that description in an October 2021 affidavit.
James criticized Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, for saying she did not know if she had met with the bankers personally or if she could confirm the contents of her own emails.
James also rejected arguments by Donald Trump and his sons Donald Jr. and Eric that she lacked standing to sue and “acted contrary to the old and common rules” governing prosecutors, saying Engoron had already rejected their claim. that he was chasing a political “witch.” hunt.”
In early January, Donald Trump ended two legal challenges to James’s lawsuit, after a Florida judge imposed $937,989 in penalties against him and his lawyer for filing a “completely frivolous” lawsuit accusing Hillary Clinton of trying to manipulate the 2016 US presidential election.
James called for sanctions on the same day that a new video of Donald Trump’s affidavit from his office on August 10 showed the former president repeatedly refusing to answer questions, citing his right not to incriminate himself under the US Constitution.
“This is a vindictive and selfish fishing expedition the likes of which this country has perhaps never seen before,” Trump said. “Anyone in my position who didn’t accept the Fifth Amendment would be a fool, an absolute fool.”