Former President Donald Trump wrote on his social media platform Sunday that he is no longer planning to testify in his civil fraud trial in New York on Monday.
Trump had been expected to return to court Monday to testify in an effort to bolster his defense against allegations he fraudulently inflated the value of his properties, after he was questioned by the New York attorney general’s office last month. But the former president wrote in a lengthy message on Truth Social that he “WILL NOT BE TESTIFYING ON MONDAY,” while continuing to attack the attorney general’s case against him and the judge overseeing it.
“President Trump has already testified,” Trump attorney Chris Kise said in a statement. “There is really nothing more to say to a Judge who has imposed an unconstitutional gag order and thus far appears to have ignored President Trump’s testimony and that of everyone else involved in the complex financial transactions at issue in the case.”
Trump had already testified once in the trial, but his appearance Monday would have given him a chance to speak at length while being questioned by his lawyers about his business and properties, and to attack the attorney general’s allegations against him. While the case does not involve criminal charges, the complaint from the attorney general is personal to Trump because it hits at his brand directly.
Had he testified, Trump would have been operating under a gag order imposed by Judge Arthur Engoron barring commentary about the judge’s staff. The gag order – which Engoron has fined Trump twice for violating – was put in place after the former president attacked the judge’s clerk on his social media.
Trump attorney Alina Habba said Thursday that she had recommended Trump not testify because of the gag order.
“He still wants to take the stand even though my advice is at this point you should never take the stand with a gag order. But he is so firmly against what is happening in this court,” she said.
Trump’s attorneys have appealed Engoron’s gag order, though it still remains in place. Last week, Trump’s attorneys asked the judge to postpone his testimony in the defense case until the gag order is decided by the appeals court, which the judge denied.
When Trump was questioned by the New York attorney general’s office last month, his combative testimony drew rebukes from Engoron for ignoring the questions and instead attacking the attorney general, the judge and the case itself.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking $250 million in damages and to bar Trump from conducting business in the state. The attorney general’s complaint accuses Trump, his adult sons and his company of fraudulently inflating the values of his properties to obtain more favorable loan and insurance rates.
Following Trump’s surprise announcement Sunday, a clerk for the court told CNN that court will be dark Monday. Proceedings will resume Tuesday as scheduled, and Eli Bartov, an accounting expert who Trump came to see testify last week, will resume the final part of his testimony.
The attorney general’s office will then have a day for rebuttals. After that, each side has until January 5 to file briefs with Engoron. Closing arguments will take place January 11.
Trump has attended the trial several times, including Thursday, when an expert accounting witness testified for the defense.
Speaking outside the courtroom, Trump – the GOP front-runner in the 2024 presidential race – complained that he was in New York instead of campaigning in one of the early swing states, even though he was attending voluntarily.
“I should be right now in Iowa, in New Hampshire, in South Carolina. I shouldn’t be sitting in a courthouse,” Trump said.
This story has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Kara Scannell contributed to this report.
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