"This judge’s bizarre behavior has no place in our judicial system," she wrote
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) sent a letter to the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct expressing "serious concerns" about the judge overseeing a civil fraud trial against former President Donald Trump and the Trump Organization.
"This judge’s bizarre behavior has no place in our judicial system," she wrote, describing "inappropriate bias" and "judicial intemperance" in her Nov. 10 letter.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is suing President Trump for defrauding the state by artificially inflating his net worth in a trial that began on Oct. 2. A week before the trial, New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron had granted the attorney general's office a summary judgment in their favor, finding President Trump liable for fraud.
As such, the bench trial—there is no jury under the statute prosecutors are using—will only deal with what penalties President Trump will need to face. Ms. James is asking for $250 million in damages and to bar the former president and other executives from doing business in the state for five years.
President Trump has attended the trial regularly, giving updates to the press when in court. In recent weeks, his attorneys have clashed with the judge, sometimes resulting in drawn-out arguments in court, with the defense attorneys accusing him of bias as he often allows the prosecution to ask questions he overrules for the defense, and other issues.
Ms. Stefanik echoed these concerns, pointing out that the defendant is a leading candidate for the presidency.
"It appears the judicial system is being politicized to affect the outcome of the campaign," she wrote.
"Judge Engoron has displayed a clear judicial bias against the defendant throughout the case, breaking several rules in the New York Code of Judicial Conduct."
Ms. Stefanik asks that the commission sanction Justice Engoron to "bring back credibility to our great state's legal system."
Bias?Ms. Stefanik listed several items she believed pointed to bias, beginning a year ago, before the trial, when the judge told President Trump's attorney that President Trump was "just a bad guy."
She also accused him of ignoring an appellate court's ruling that set a statute of limitations on the case, smiling for the pool cameras, and the summary judgment he made before the trial began.
"And Judge Engoron has made it crystal clear he doesn’t care what the defendant or his attorneys have to say," Ms. Stefanik added, including a snapshot of just a few of the blows exchanged between defense attorneys and the judge, which were especially pronounced the day President Trump testified.
While on the witness stand, President Trump gave long and detailed answers about his properties, which the judge seemed not to like. He told his lawyers to "control" their client, and when attorney Chris Kise tried to explain the "extraordinary circumstances" they were in that might warrant these detailed answered, the judge said he was "not here to listen to what you [President Trump] have to say."
Justice Engoron told defense attorney Alina Habba, “I am not here to hear what he has to say, now sit down!” when she protested, and when Mr. Kise said he would file a motion for directed verdict, the judge said, "You better not, Chris!"
Ms. Stefanik stated that Justice Engoron and his staff are Democrat donors, and the judge himself made a political contribution in 2018, which is against the rules of conduct. His principal law clerk, Allison Greenfield, has also made political contributions of $3,335 over 2022 and 2023, but the rules state that judges should prevent their staff from contributing to political campaigns more than...
