Trump Tests Gag Order Limits While Feet Away From Judge

Former President Donald Trump tested the boundaries of a partial gag order on Wednesday just feet away from the New York judge who issued it in his ongoing civil fraud case.

In addition to the civil fraud case in New York City, Trump is currently facing an array of other legal issues. The former president was previously federally indicted by Special Counsel Jack Smith for allegations relating to attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. He was also indicted for alleged mishandling of classified documents that were recovered from his Mar-a-Lago residence. He has maintained his innocence in all cases.

During Trump’s trial on Wednesday, Judge Arthur Engoron spoke about reports from the Associated Press that the former president delivered a speech outside of the courtroom where he said, “This judge is a very partisan judge with a person who is very partisan sitting alongside him, perhaps even more partisan than he is.”

In response, Engoron said, “Its very easy for the public to know who that person is…I’m very protective of my staff, as I believe i should be… I don’t want anybody to be killed,” Jose Pagliery of the Daily Beast reported on X, formerly Twitter. It’s unclear as of press time if Engoron would punish Trump for his remarks.

Earlier this month, Engoron issued a partial gag order against Trump in his New York civil fraud case, where he is accused of inflating his own net worth and the value of some of his properties. The gag order was imposed following a post on TruthSocial by Trump where he criticized one of Engoron’s staff members, Allison Greenfield. The post was eventually deleted.

However, the post from Trump was not removed from his own website, prompting Engoron to announce a $5,000 fine for violations of the gag order.

“Donald Trump has received ample warning from this Court as to the possible repercussions of violating the gag order. He specifically acknowledged that he understood and would abide by it,” Engoron said in announcing the gag order violation. “Accordingly, issuing yet another warning is not longer appropriate; this Court is way behind the ‘warning’ stage.”

Engoron continued, “I learned that the subject post was never removed from the website… And, in fact, had been on that website for the past 17 days. I understand that it was removed late last night but only in response to an email.”

Michael McAuliffe, a former federal prosecutor and elected state attorney, told Newsweek on Wednesday that “Trump’s continued negative, accusatory comments about the New York state judge and staff in the face of a partial gag order appear designed to directly challenge the judge’s control over the trial.”

According to McAuliffe, Trump may be betting on the possibility that sanctions for violating the gag order may be reversed on appeal but he noted that it’s “a very uncertain wager.”

“There also is the possibility that Trump understands he’s on the losing end of the civil fraud trial and simply is lashing out in the hope that it creates political cover for the loss and eventual penalties for the fraud,” McAuliffe said. “It often is difficult to determine whether Trump’s statements are the result of affirmative thought or merely reactions in the moment.”

Newsweek reached out to Trump’s spokesperson via email for comment.