House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) speaks during a press conference following a caucus meeting with House Republicans on Capitol Hill on May 10, 2023 in Washington, DC.
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House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik filed an ethics complaint Friday calling for the removal of a judge who presided over former President Donald Trump’s $250 million corporate fraud trial.
The No. 3 Republican in the House and one of Trump’s staunchest allies in the House, Stefanik alleged in her complaint that Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron had shown “clear judicial bias” against the former president and had a “bizarre bias” during his time in office behavior.” Civil litigation profile.
Stefanik, whose congressional district includes northeastern New York, called on the state Commission on Judicial Conduct to “take corrective action to restore due process and protect our constitutional rights.”
Stefanik also wrote that Engoron “must recuse himself from this case,” even though the commission does not have the authority to remove specific judges.
The lawsuit is a notable move by Trump’s political allies in Washington to join his aggressive efforts to undermine Engoron, whose rulings in the case could be a major blow to the ex-president and his business empire.
The letter from Stefanik, who is not a lawyer and has nothing to do with the case, could also be used to bolster Trump’s argument if he appeals any of Engoron’s eventual rulings.
After a week of testimony from Trump family members in the trial, some legal experts say they have done little to help their case.
The case resolves claims by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who accuses Trump, his two adult sons, his company and some of his top executives of fraudulently inflating the value of Trump’s assets to increase his net worth and reap financial benefits.
Engoron will render verdicts in the trial without a jury because neither side has requested it.
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Engoron has already held the defendants liable for fraud. The trial itself determines how much damages or other penalties will be imposed on the defendants. The judge will also consider six other claims in James’ lawsuit that have yet to be resolved.
In addition to demanding damages of around $250 million, James wants to permanently ban Trump Sr., Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump from running a New York company.
Stefanik’s letter Friday reiterated many of Trump’s own criticisms of Engoron and James’ case as she called on the commission to sanction the judge.
She railed against the judge for posing in front of courtroom cameras on the first day of the trial, for granting James’ request for partial summary judgment in a pretrial motion and for imposing a gag order on Trump and his lawyers. She also repeated Trump’s claim that the value of his Mar-a-Lago resort home in Palm Beach, Florida, was much higher than estimates made during the trial.
Engoron had blocked Trump from making public statements after Trump repeatedly targeted the judge’s chief clerk on the second day of the trial. The judge later extended that gag order to Trump’s lawyers after they made “repeated, inappropriate comments” about the employee.
Trump was found to have violated this narrow gag order twice since it was imposed, resulting in a $15,000 fine. Stefanik called the gag order “un-American.”
Her letter also targets the clerk, claiming she gave more political donations to Democratic candidates than she was allowed to as a court official.
“Judge Engoron’s bizarre and biased behavior makes a mockery of the New York judicial system,” Stefanik wrote. “The Commission’s sanctions against Judge Engoron are necessary to restore the credibility of our great state’s legal system.”
When asked for comment on Stefanik’s letter, commission administrator Robert Tembeckjian said in a statement to CNBC: “All matters before the Commission on Judicial Conduct are confidential by law unless and until a judge is found to have committed ethical misconduct, and an appropriate decision is made.” This effect is issued.”
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