New York Attorney General Is Hitting Trump Where It Hurts: A Real Estate Ban
New York Attorney General Letitia James asked the judge overseeing Donald Trump’s bank fraud trial to penalize the former president to the tune of $370 million on Friday—$120 million more than originally requested—arguing that Trump showed on the stand he had gained that much through unlawful conduct.
James is also requesting that the real estate mogul receive what could potentially prove as the most costly penalty of them all: a total ban from participating in New York’s real estate market.
The penalty request came in a post-trial brief filed Friday by the New York attorney general, who sued Trump for $250 million in 2022 for overinflating his net worth to obtain favorable bank loans.
Attorneys will make their closing arguments in the trial next week.
Trump’s bank fraud trial has regularly grabbed headlines since it began in earnest in September 2023, mainly thanks to his inflammatory social media posts about Judge Arthur Engoron and his staff, which resulted in harassment of Engoron’s law clerks and a stunning gag order and several fines against the former president.
Engoron has said he will try to issue a ruling on the case by the end of the month.