US judge fines Donald Trump $5,000 for defying court order

In his ruling, Judge Engoron ordered Trump to pay the fine to the New York Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Fund within 10 days. The judge warned that future violations, whether intentional or unintentional, would subject the former president to more severe sanctions. These sanctions could include, but are not limited to, larger financial penalties if Trump fails to comply with the court’s order, and could even result in the politician being arrested under the New York Judicial Code. Judge Engoron also reprimanded the former president’s lawyers for violating the court order, warning that such actions could result in jail time.

Earlier, on October 3 of this year, Judge Engoron ordered Mr. Trump not to comment on any court employees. This move came after the former President posted a post and photo on the social network Truth Social, attacking Mr. Engoron's secretary, who is the girlfriend of Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader who holds the majority in the US Senate. The post was deleted from Mr. Trump's personal account on Truth Social shortly after the ban was issued. However, this information remained on Mr. Trump's 2024 campaign website for 17 days, until the court ordered the post to be removed on October 19.

Mr. Trump, the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, and his two eldest sons are on trial in New York state on charges of falsely declaring assets to gain illegal profits. Specifically, New York Attorney General Letitia James accused Mr. Trump and his associates of "inflating" their assets by 17-35%, equivalent to about 812 million-2.2 billion USD in the period 2011-2021, to enjoy preferential bank loans and more favorable insurance contracts.