Former US President Donald Trump leaves Trump Tower to meet with New York Attorney General Letitia James for a civil investigation on August 10, 2022 in New York City.
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Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday declined to answer questions for hours from attorneys for New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is conducting a civil investigation into the Trump Organizationbusiness practices of.
Right after arriving that court-ordered interview at James’s office in lower Manhattan, Trump announced in an emailed statement that he had invoked his Fifth Amendment to resist making self-incriminating statements.
Trump only answered one question – his name – and then called Thursday for every question he was asked, his attorney Ronald Fischetti told NBC News.
Trump also read aloud a statement in which he called the James investigation “the greatest witch hunt in the history of our country,” and accused the Democratic attorney general of “openly campaigning on the policy of killing me,” Fischetti said.
James was there for about half of the total four-hour session, according to Fischetti, who said Kevin Wallace, an attorney for her office, asked Trump about valuations of various real estate properties, including his golf club, his signing of documents relating to mortgages and loans, and about the size of his apartment. Fischetti describes the mood in the room as polite and stress-free.
Trump’s refusal to answer questions is legal, but could hurt his chances of winning against James in any civil lawsuits she files related to her investigation.
James focused on allegations that The Trump Organization Incorrectly Reported stated valuation of a number real estate property financial benefits, in the form of better loan and insurance terms, and tax benefits.
“I used to ask, ‘If you’re innocent, why are you doing the Fifth Amendment?” I now know the answer to that question,” Trump said in an emailed statement after his arrival at the impeachment site, which claimed James was a traitor prosecutor with ties against him and the public. his company.
“When your family, your company and everyone in your orbit becomes the target of a baseless, politically motivated Witch Hunt backed by lawyers, prosecutors and Fake News Media, you don’t have a choice,” Trump said.
“Therefore, on the advice of my attorney and for all of the above reasons, I refuse to answer questions about the rights and privileges afforded to all citizens under the United States Constitution,” he said.
In 2016, Trump suggested that people who invoke the Fifth Amendment when questioned would be guilty of something.
A spokesperson for James said in a statement Wednesday afternoon, “While we will not comment on specifics, we can confirm that today, our office has reached to oust former President Donald Trump.”
“Attorney General Letitia James was involved in the impeachment in which Mr. Trump invoked his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination,” the spokesperson said.
“Attorney General James will pursue the truth and the law wherever they may lead. Our investigation continues.”
Trump was removed from office two days after the FBI, in an unrelated criminal investigation, raid his house at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, and seized what his attorney said were about a dozen boxes of documents.
That search is related to an ongoing investigation into whether the law was broken when boxes of White House files – some of which were marked as classified – came to an end. were moved to Mar-a-Lago instead of the National Archives.
A Manhattan Supreme Court judge in February ruling orders Trump and his two adult children for questioning by James’ team have noted that they will “have the right to refuse to answer any questions they believe may be incriminating.”
Judge Arthur Engoron also wrote that if Trump invokes the Fifth Amendment, their refusal to answer questions cannot be used against them in a criminal prosecution.
But Engoron went on to note that a jury in a civil case is allowed to draw “a negative inference” when a party to the case “invokes that right against self-incrimination”. In other words, James could argue with the jury that they should assume that Trump acknowledged her claims against him by refusing to answer her questions.
The Trumps have asked Engoron to block the subpoenas, or at least maintain their enforcement until the conclusion of a parallel criminal investigation into the Trump Organization by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump waves as he walks to a car in New York City on August 10, 2022. Donald Trump on Wednesday declined to answer sworn questions in New York about allegations of fraud. fraud at his family business, as legal pressure mounts on the President whose home was raided by the FBI just two days ago.
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Trump has denied wrongdoing in all pending investigations involving him.
Trump said he decided he had “absolutely no choice” but to plead with the Fifth to remove James after the FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago “because of the current Administration and many prosecutors in the United States.” This nation has lost all moral and ethical limits of politeness.”
In a post on his social media platform early Wednesday, he also accused James, who is Black, of being “racist”, a charge he had also previously granted to her. and two other Black prosecutors, who are investigating him separately.
Trump and his two adult children, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump, for months resisted complying with subpoenas from James asking for their testimony under oath for her investigation.
But after the court’s failed attempt to block those subpoenasDonald Jr. and Ivanka answered questions from James’ investigators last week, NBC reported earlier. Donald Jr runs the Trump Organization with his brother Eric Trump, and Ivanka is a former Trump Organization executive who served as a senior White House adviser during her father’s administration.
Eric Trump invoked his Fifth Amendment more than 500 times when he was questioned under oath during the October 2020 investigation, according to a apply to court in January.
While campaigning for president in 2016, Trump in a speech in Iowa blasted several staff members of his Democratic opponent, the former Secretary of State. Hillary Clintonfor invoking the Fifth Amendment when they were questioned by a House select committee investigating the attack on US diplomatic facilities in Benghazi, Libya.
“So there are five people working on the Fifth Amendment. Like you see on the crowd, right? You see the mob taking the Fifth. If you’re innocent why are you doing the Fifth Amendment? five?” Trump asked at the time.
Trump’s refusal to testify Wednesday added even more drama to the week that began with what is believed to be the first ever search of the former president’s residence by federal law enforcement agents. as part of a criminal investigation.
Monday’s raid sparked a political firestorm, with Republicans harshly criticizing the FBI – led by Director Chris Wray, a Trump appointee – and demanding answers about its rationale from Attorney General Merrick Garland, a Presidential candidate. Joe Biden.
The Justice Department has not released details of the search warrants the FBI executed.
Legal experts say Trump’s lawyers are in possession of copies of that search warrant, and they can release the contents of the search warrant if they so desire. The subpoena and a related affidavit supporting it will detail what the FBI is looking for and how it believes there is a probable cause for the crime or crimes committed in connection with it. to that evidence.
But Trump’s team has no plans to release a copy of the subpoena, a source close to Trump told NBC News.
Trump and his family and business have been the focus of numerous active investigations at the state and federal levels.
In addition to the filings investigation at Mar-a-Lago, the Justice Department is reportedly investigating the events leading up to the Capitol riots on January 6, 2021, by thousands of Trump supporters who for hours interrupted Biden’s confirmation of election victory by a joint session of Congress.
Manhattan District Attorney’s Office last year charged the Trump Organization and its chief financial officer with a criminal conspiracy to evade taxes to compensate executives.
In Georgia, a special state grand jury is investigating possible criminal efforts by Trump and others to interfere in the 2020 presidential election in that state as part of a nationwide effort. country to overturn Biden’s victory in the race for the White House.
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court in Washington, DC,.
The committee said it wants those records to look at how the IRS is complying with a law requiring annual audits of incumbent presidents’ tax returns.
