Judge Fines Trump $9,000, Raises Threat of Jail in Criminal Trial

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump was held in contempt of court Tuesday and fined $9,000 for repeatedly violating a gag order that barred him from making public statements about witnesses, jurors, and some others connected to his New York criminal money case. If he does it again, the judge warned, he could be jailed.

Prosecutors had alleged 10 violations, but New York Judge Juan M. Merchan found there were nine. The ruling was a stinging rebuke for the former President, who had insisted he was exercising his free speech rights.

Merchan wrote that Trump “is hereby warned that the Court will not tolerate continued willful violations of its lawful orders and that if necessary and appropriate under the circumstances, it will impose an incarceratory punishment.”

Trump stared down at the table in front of him as the judge read the ruling, frowning slightly.

The ruling came at the start of the second week of testimony in the historic case. Manhattan prosecutors say Trump and his associates took part in an illegal scheme to influence the 2016 presidential campaign by burying negative stories. He has pleaded not guilty.

Trump must pay the fine by the close of the business day on Friday, Merchan said in a written ruling.

Merchan is also weighing other alleged gag order violations by Trump and will hear arguments Thursday.

Court was resuming Tuesday with Gary Farro, a banker who helped Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen open accounts.

For his part, the former President and presumptive Republican nominee has been campaigning in his off-hours, but he is required to be in court when it is in session, four days a week. Outside the courtroom, Trump criticized prosecutors again. “This is a case that should have never been brought,” he said.

Through detailed testimony on email exchanges, business transactions, and bank accounts, prosecutors are forming the foundation of their argument that Trump is guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with the payments. The prosecution is leading up to crucial testimony from Cohen himself, who went to federal prison after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations and other crimes. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.

It’s unclear when Cohen will take the stand; the trial is expected to go on for another month or more. And with every moment Trump is in court as the first of his four criminal trials plays out, he’s growing increasingly frustrated while the November election moves ever closer.

“Our country’s [in trouble] and we sit here day after day after day, which is their plan, because they think they might be able to eke out an election,” Trump declared last week in the courthouse hallway.

Former President Donald Trump waves to the media as he returns from a break during his trial at Manhattan criminal court, Friday.

Dave Sanders/The New York Times via AP, Pool