CNN
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Donald Trump said he plans to attend his civil fraud trial in New York next week after recent court orders “changed the terrain,” according to a judge’s order in an unrelated case.
A federal judge in Florida overseeing Trump’s lawsuit against his former lawyer Michael Cohen laid out Trump’s plan in an order granting a request to delay filings in the case because it would conflict with a New York trial set to begin on Monday.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres said Trump “again requested that the court modify his plea to appear in person at his previously scheduled New York hearing. The plaintiff represented that because the landmark case now has pre-trial rulings, he is required to appear in New York—at least every day of the trial’s first week.” will be created.”
But when asked by reporters in Los Angeles on Friday night if he was going to the hearing on Monday, Trump said, “I might, I might, yes.”
According to two sources, Trump’s team is looking into arrangements for Trump to take him to New York next week — although as of Friday night, the trip had not yet been confirmed.
However, the US Secret Service has met with New York Police Department and court security officials, and a law enforcement official said Trump plans to appear at the hearing next week.
A law enforcement source told CNN that the former president is expected to appear in court on Monday and Tuesday. The official said the planning for this possible next appearance by the former president would be similar to what officials plan for Trump’s appearance for indictment by the Manhattan district attorney in April.
A separate law enforcement source told CNN that Trump is expected to appear in court on Monday and Tuesday.
New York Civil Trump’s Attorneys He did not respond to a request for comment on whether he will attend the hearing in person.
This week, the judge overseeing the New York case, Arthur Engoron, dealt a major blow to Trump’s defense against the $250 million lawsuit. The judge ruled Trump liable for fraud and overstating his assets in his financial statements for a decade. He also ordered the revocation of business certificates for some Trump companies and gave his lawyers 30 days to come up with a plan.
At trial, New York Attorney General Letitia James did not need to establish that the financial statements were false. He seeks to prove that Trump, his eldest sons, the Trump Organization and some of its employees conspired to falsify business records, make false financial statements and engage in insurance fraud. He is asking the judge to bar the Trumps from serving as officers of companies in New York state and barring them from entering into business deals in the state for five years.
Trump is on the witness list for both the government and his own legal team. His lawyer has said he is keen to testify on his behalf.
Engoron rejected Trump’s legal arguments, writing in this week’s order that Trump was living in a “fantasy world.”
Earlier this week, a spokesperson for the New York Courts Administration told CNN that the courthouse had beefed up security around judges.
Earlier this year E. Trump did not attend the civil sexual assault and defamation lawsuit brought by Jean Carroll. A jury found him liable for sexual assault and defamation and awarded Carroll $5 million. Trump appealed.
