Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron’s lengthy—92 pages—fact-focused decision on Friday sustaining the charges against former President Donald Trump leveled by New York Attorney General Letitia James was a clear victory for her office. Sitting as both judge and jury at a bench trial, Engoron was empowered to resolve contested credibility, draw inferences from the elicited evidence, and render a verdict. However, since it was a bench trial, the Appellate Division, First Department can make its own findings of fact.
As the Trump Organization processes the court’s decision (and its financial implications), attention will inevitably focus on its reliance on disclaimers as a defense to fraud, and the application of the excessive fines provision under both Article 1, Section 5 of the state constitution, and the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, to stanch a potentially devastating financial wound.
