Trump speaks during a break in his civil business fraud trial at New York Supreme Court, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023, in New York. NEW YORK — Donald Trump was called to the witness stand and then fined $10,000 on Wednesday after a judge concluded that the former president had violated a limited gag order in his civil fraud trial.
“The idea that the statement would refer to the witness,” Engoron said, “doesn’t make any sense to me.”after Engoron learned that the offending social media post from early October had lingered on Trump's campaign website for weeks after he was ordered to take it down from his Truth Social media platform, which was done.
The episode highlighted questions about whether Trump can abide by court directives aimed at reining in his rhetoric while also respecting his free speech rights as he campaigns to return to the White House. Trump lawyer Alina Habba confronted Cohen with comments he had made praising Trump, before turning on him when Cohen's legal problems started in 2018.