Two schools of thought on delays and Donald Trump: 1. They benefit him, allowing him to run out the clock; 2. They cripple him, because what they signify is that nothing is handed down from the bench until it’s bulletproof. I’m going to subscribe to the second interpretation of events with respect to the highly awaited verdict from Judge Arthur Engoron on the Trump Organization fraud trial. Insider:
New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, who oversaw the three-month bench trial, previously said he aimed to issue his verdict in the case by the end of January.
That’s no longer the plan. The written verdict is now expected to hit the electronic court docket on or around Monday, the person, an insider who spoke with BI on condition of anonymity, said. This source’s identity is known to Business Insider.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has sought at least $370 million in damages from the Trump Organization, Trump personally, his two eldest sons, and other executives included as defendants.
Trump could have to pay more than $370 million. That’s the fine that was asked for but it’s by no means the cap on what is possible. Further, if Trump and his family are run out of the State of New York and not able to conduct business there any longer — which is anticipated — then that is not only going to affect the Trump coffers substantially but it will be disgraceful as well. Whatever Ivanka Trump’s dreams of yore about climbing the top rungs of New York society, they will be forever buried.
Trump’s children will of course blame everybody, the Democrats, the Deep State, the position of the planets in the solar system, everyone and everything except the responsible party — which is they themselves.
Whatever Engoron’s verdict, it will almost certainly be appealed as well. In their closing argument at the trial, Trump’s attorneys raised constitutional issues, indicating they will almost certainly bring the case to the US Supreme Court if they need to.
All the more reason Trump needs to find a top appellate lawyer. And all the more reason that lawyer, should s/he be found, needs to find some kind of a reversible error.
That’s actually the next phase of this fiasco and it will be intriguing how it all goes down. Who will represent Trump on his appeals? Will it be another Christopher Kise character, i.e., a partner in a white shoe law firm who will resign for propriety’s sake, take a hefty retainer of several million dollars and then go through the motions — without the performative theater that Trump loves?
Or, will Trump find himself another Alina Habba? And does such a creature exist in the world of appellate law? It will certainly be interesting to find out. Right now I’m anticipating a Christopher Kise clone. Kise had a stellar record in New York as somebody who got off clients in similar situations to Trump. But he didn’t perform any miracles for Trump, as you witnessed. And Trump wants and needs a miracle worker.
Whoever agrees to do it, get your money up front. Cash only.
Trump’s real problem in finding a lawyer boils down to one simple fact:
Will he have enough cash to actually PAY a top-flight appeals lawyer after posting almost $100 million in bond?
Um, I thought the verdict had already been determined months ago and all Engoron is doing is determining how much Trump has to pay.
Basically, Engoron is simply deciding the sentence to be applied after the “Guilty” verdict (and the court proceedings were simply the civil equivalent of whether to give a serial killer the death penalty or just life in prison without parole).
Is it just me or did Kise sit there and do nothing in court other than file his appearance at the start of things. I see the pictures and he’s sitting there with a grimace. Like he wants to be somewhere, ANYWHERE else. To me the look on his face in the photos is “I had a good career going. Yes, I got paid a lot of money upfront but I paid a price of my own to get it. AND if this idiot colleague and our client would have listened to me we’d have a chance. But no, they insisted our side would do things THIS way, so I’m not saying shit. I’m just going to sit here with my mouth shut and hope it’s all over soon.”
Maybe he hopes by keeping a low profile he can get back with some law firm again in a year or two. He can say to potential partners “Hey, I was there but you saw how they were. I tried to tell them better but they wouldn’t listen.” I’m not sure that will work. He’s forever tainted by the Trump stain.
This is brilliant on Engoron’s part. It gives Trump all weekend to rave about how unfair it is and call all the court personnel names. Makes it easier to justify a max penalty.
Hey Mr Magoo…probably a good idea to scrape up some cash for extra Depends, ketchup, and Adderall. You may want to find some antidepressants while you’re shopping. Maybe your alcoholic ‘doctor’ can hook you up!