New York Judge Who Branded Trump A Fraud Speaks Out On Threats To His Life

The judge who presided complete a blockbuster fraud trial alleging brazen fraud successful Donald Trump’s existent property empire says he still gets harassing telephone calls and messages aft he was taxable to an avalanche of attacks from nan president and his allies.

New York Justice Arthur Engoron, who is now retired, was bombarded pinch antisemitic and homophobic comments throughout nan civilian trial. His agency received an envelope pinch achromatic powder, and a bomb threat was called into his location hours earlier nan closing arguments successful nan case.

“Judges would cognize nan superior rule: We cannot conflict back,” Engoron told CBS News. “That conscionable goes pinch nan territory. No matter what we’re called.”

Following an investigation from nan agency of New York Attorney General Letitia James, Engoron wished Trump and his family business defrauded banks and investigators successful a years-long strategy to inflate nan worth of his properties. In 2024, aft a chair proceedings successful a Manhattan courtroom, Engoron ordered Trump, his big sons and their main associates successful nan Trump Organization to forfeit much than $364 million, pinch increasing interest, from their “ill-gotten gains.”

The lawsuit is still playing retired successful appeals, though authorities appeals tribunal judges person upheld Engoron’s findings that Trump and his business partners committed brazen fraud. The judge says he “tried to do nan correct thing.”

“I had my moments of glory,” he told CBS News. “I tried to do nan correct thing. I tried to beryllium very even-handed erstwhile I made rulings. You don’t count nan rulings, but astatine nan extremity of nan day, I deliberation I ruled for each broadside somewhat similarly, if it was quantified astatine each … So it was a nett positive. I was gladsome I sewage to do it.”

Engoron and his tribunal unit faced a deluge of threats and harassment aft a proceedings began successful New York County Supreme Court successful Lower Manhattan.

A explosive threat astatine his family’s home successful January 2024 arrived hours aft Trump posted a tirade against nan judge connected his Truth Social.

Trump, astatine nan time, lashed retired against nan court’s merchandise of an email speech that revealed his lawyers refusing to perpetrate their customer to limiting his outbursts successful their transportation for his transportation of closing arguments that morning.

Engoron was stepping his canine that greeting erstwhile he saw constabulary lights successful nan distance, he told CBS News.

“There’s been a reliable explosive threat against your house. Is location anybody other successful nan house?” he recalled a constabulary lieutenant asking him.

His woman and children were wrong nan home, he said.

Police yet wished that nan threat was “unfounded,” among akin politically charged “swatting” and hoax explosive threats against officials crossed nan country.

The threat did not effect proceedings successful nan trial, which resumed later that morning. Engoron did not reside nan threat erstwhile he returned to nan bench.

Engoron — who Trump routinely branded a “wack job” and “lunatic” passim nan proceedings — allowed Trump to personally reside nan tribunal that morning, contempt his ineligible squad failing to limit his remarks to nan lawsuit itself without utilizing nan infinitesimal for a run stunt.

In his closing remarks from nan defense table, Trump launched into a long-winded unbroken condemnation of acquainted grievances while coating himself arsenic nan unfortunate of governmental persecution who should beryllium owed money for nan litigation against him.

“We should person damages for what we’ve gone through,” Trump said. “What happened here, sir, is simply a fraud connected me.”

In nan weeks starring up to that unprecedented exchange, Engoron and his unit were inundated pinch “hundreds of threats, disparaging and harassing comments and antisemitic messages,” according to a tribunal filing from a apical rule enforcement charismatic pinch nan court’s Department of Public Safety.

Transcriptions of threatening voicemails aft Trump first targeted Engoron’s main clerk capable much than 275 single-spaced pages, nan filing stated.

On nan trial’s 2nd day, Trump falsely accused Engoron’s clerk Alison Greenfield of being Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer’s “girlfriend” and posted a nexus to her Instagram account.

Engoron later told nan court, without naming Trump, that he ordered a “disparaging, untrue and personally-identifying station astir a personnel of my staff” to beryllium deleted.

“Personal attacks connected members of my tribunal unit are unacceptable, inappropriate and I will not tolerate them nether immoderate circumstances,” he said. “Consider this connection a gag order from posting, emailing aliases speaking publically astir immoderate members of my staff.”

An serviceman had to escort Engoron’s clerk to and from her location aft Trump’s attacks, Engoron told CBS News.

“I sometimes opportunity that rule clerks are nan top invention successful nan history of nan world. They're conscionable location to thief … and we want to protect them because they can't protect themselves arsenic overmuch arsenic we can,” Engoron said.

Those attacks “didn't impact my rulings, my thoughts astir nan case,” he added.