BREAKING: Court Throws Out Multimillion-Dollar Fraud Penalty Against Trump

An appeals court threw out the $355 million fraud penalty against President Donald Trump on Thursday.

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York found the penalty excessive in violation of the Constitution.

However, the court upheld last year’s ruling finding Trump, his two oldest sons, and his business liable for 10 years of business fraud.

Trump responded to the ruling, praising the court for “the Courage to throw out this unlawful and disgraceful decision that was hurting Business all throughout New York State.”

“It was a political witch hunt, in a business sense, the likes of which no one has ever seen before,” he continued. “This was a Case of Election Interference by the City and State trying to show, illegally, that I did things that were wrong when, in fact, everything I did was absolutely CORRECT and, even, PERFECT.”

Trump said the trials were a political scam to interfere with his presidential campaign.

“This was an attack by the Biden/Harris Administration on their Political Opponent, ME,” he said.

In February 2024, a New York judge ordered Trump and his companies to pay more than $300 million in penalties after finding that he engaged in fraud by padding financial statements that went to lenders and insurers.

Judge Arthur Engoron ordered him last year to pay $355 million in penalties. With interest, the sum is now over $515 million.

“While the injunctive relief ordered by the court is well crafted to curb defendants’ business culture, the court’s disgorgement order, which directs that defendants pay nearly half a billion dollars to the State of New York, is an excessive fine that violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution,” Judges Dianne T. Renwick and Peter H. Moulton wrote in one of the opinions shaping the court’s ruling.

New York Attorney General Letitia James brought the suit on behalf of the state. She is currently under investigation for mortgage fraud allegations.

During Trump’s first term, James campaigned on a promise to investigate the president, calling him a “con man” and “carnival barker.”

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

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