Donald Trump’s lawyers on Monday asked to keep the gag order in his New York civil fraud trial on pause — arguing that while the daily threats made against the judge and his clerk are “vile,” they don’t justify limiting the ex-president’s right to free speech.
The stakes are all the more important because Trump, as the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, must be able to “critique, without fear of reprisal, the court presiding over” the historic non-jury trial against him, the attorneys wrote in a filing.
The filing from Trump’s team came after a lawyer for Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron argued last week that the limited gag order should remain in effect because of a “deluge” of threats made against the judge and his chief law clerk Allison Greenfield.
Trump, 77, snagged a win when a New York appellate judge earlier this month temporarily lifted the gag order — which Engoron put in place on Oct. 3 — citing concerns over the former president’s right to free speech.
Engoron had ruled that Trump and his lawyers couldn’t publicly comment about the court’s staff after the real estate tycoon posted a photo of Greenfield with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), falsely calling her “Schumer’s girlfriend” and saying she was running the trial against him.
Trump’s side filed an appeal to both lift the gag order — and the $15,000 fines that Engoron levied against him after finding he had twice violated the ruling by publicly commenting on Greenfield.
Greenfield has repeatedly made headlines since Trump’s initial post and as his lawyers have claimed several times she was co-judging with Engoron, since she could be seen seated next to the judge throughout the eight weeks of trial — whispering in his ear and passing him notes.
Because of the spotlight Trump’s side has shone on the clerk, her personal cell phone number and email address have been “compromised,” due to “daily doxing,” according to an affidavit filed Wednesday by Court Officer Captain Charles Hollon, with the Judicial Threats Assessment Unit.
“She has been subjected to, on a daily basis, harassing, disparaging comments and antisemitic tropes,” Hollon wrote, noting Greenfield daily receives 20 to 30 calls and 30 to 50 social media messages.
“The threats against Justice Engoron and Ms. Greenfield are considered to be serious and credible and not hypothetical or speculative,” Hollon wrote.
In their filing Monday, Trump’s attorneys claimed that Greenfield “allowed herself to be voluntarily photographed, videotaped, and identified by name in the national and international media, despite the prior existence of purported security concerns.”
The attorneys wrote that the threats, “while vile and reprehensible, do not constitute a clear and present danger of imminent harm,” according to the papers filed with an appeals court Monday morning.
The argument over the gag order came as trial continued for the ninth week in Manhattan Supreme Court.
Trump lawyer Chris Kise disclosed in court on Monday that the ex-president will return to the stand as thef final defense witness on Dec 11.
Eric Trump, a Trump Organization executive vice president and a defendant in the case, will testify for the second time as well, on Dec. 6., Kise said.
The AG’s office declined to comment on the filing.