New York, Oct 4: In a New York civil fraud case, a US judge has issued a limited restraining order against former President Donald Trump over his “derogatory” comments about a court clerk.
The restriction order, issued on Tuesday, specifically targets public comments directed at court staff members and does not impose a blanket ban, as reported by the BBC.
Earlier in the day, Trump posted a photo on his social media platform, Truth Social, of Principal Clerk Alison Greenfield with Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer at a campaign event. In the post, he referred to Greenfield as “Schumer’s girlfriend” and called for the case against her to be dismissed.
After the court recess, Judge Arthur Engoron did not name anyone directly, but cited Trump’s Truth Social posts. She said a defendant had “posted defamatory, false and personally identifying posts about a member of my staff on a social media account.”
Judge Engoron stated bluntly, “Personal attacks on members of my court staff are unacceptable, unjustified, and I will not tolerate them under any circumstances.” He warned that serious sanctions would be imposed for non-compliance of this order.
Judge Angoron’s statement effectively serves as a gag order, prohibiting any posts, emails or public comments targeting members of his staff. The controversial post was immediately removed after the ban order was issued.
Trump has consistently called the trial a “fraud” and a “scam” and has expressed his intention to testify in his own defense, saying, “Yes, I will. At the appropriate time, I will testify.”
In the civil case, the former president, his two sons and the broader Trump Organization are accused of inflating the value of their properties by more than $2 billion to secure favorable loans. Attorney General Letitia James is seeking $250 million in damages and sanctions that could prevent the Trump family from doing business in New York state. Importantly, none of the defendants will face jail time if found guilty, as this is a civil case, not a criminal one.
