Trump’s $515 Million Fraud Penalty THROWN OUT by Appeals Court

AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein

The $515 million fraud case penalty against President Donald Trump was thrown out by a New York appeals court on Thursday.

Last year, Trump was ordered to pay $354 million after a judge determined he had committed fraud by padding his financial statements to lenders and insurers. With interest, that penalty increased to $515 million.

In addition to the financial penalty, Trump was barred from running the Trump Organization for three years.

Thursday’s ruling, however, stated that the court found the financial penalty “excessive” and a violation of the Eighth Amendment. Reporting from The Associated Press continued:

“While the injunctive relief ordered by the court is well crafted to curb defendants’ business culture, the court’s disgorgement order, which directs that defendants pay nearly half a billion dollars to the State of New York, is an excessive fine that violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution,” Judges Dianne T. Renwick and Peter H. Moulton wrote in one of several opinions shaping the appeals court’s ruling.

The judge’s verdict that Trump spent decades exaggerating his wealth, however, was upheld.

Eric Trump celebrated the news on X/Twitter.

“Total victory in the sham NY Attorney General case!!!” Eric tweeted. “After 5 years of hell, justice prevailed!”

Although the five-judge panel agreed that the financial penalty should be thrown out, significant disagreements emerged with other aspects of the case. A report from BBC broke down the complicated ruling:

The appellate panel of five judges was divided over the merits of the original lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who had accused Trump and his sons of “persistent and repeated fraud”.

While several judges said she was “within her lawful power in bringing this action”, one believed the case should have been dismissed and two said that there should be a new trial of a more limited scope.

Those two, though, joined the decision to throw out the fine “for the sole purpose of ensuring finality”, wrote Judge Peter Moulton.

In the 323-page decision, Judge Moulton said that American voters had “obviously rendered a verdict” on Trump’s political career.

“This bench today unanimously derails the effort to destroy his business,” the judge wrote.

In a statement released after the ruling, James stated her office’s intention to appeal it.

“The First Department today affirmed the well-supported finding of the trial court: Donald Trump, his company, and two of his children are liable for fraud,” James said.

“The court upheld the injunctive relief we won, limiting Donald Trump and the Trump Organization officers’ ability to do business in New York. It should not be lost to history: yet another court has ruled that the president violated the law, and that our case has merit.

“We will seek appeal to the Court of Appeals and continue to protect the rights and interests of New Yorkers.”