Former President Donald Trump appeared in Manhattan on Monday for the first day of a civil fraud trial where he raged at the judge during a court break for "getting away with murder."
Justice Arthur Engoron, a Democrat, ruled last month that Trump was liable for massive business fraud, saying he overstated his net worth by billions of dollars to manipulate his loan offers.
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One of Trump's assets, his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, was valued at about $18 million, the judge found, claiming Trump had overvalued the property by 2,300%.
Trump countered, "It's worth a billion dollars, maybe a billion five," according to a recording of his remarks.
The former president pointed to a New York Sun article titled "Error in New York’s Civil Fraud Case Against Trump Is Flagged by Industry Insiders, Who Say Valuation of Mar-a-Lago Cited by Judge Is Based on a Misunderstanding of Basic Real Estate Practice."
"So they're saying the judge has misunderstood basic real estate practice," Trump told reporters. "I say they're wrong about that. He didn't misunderstand it. This is a rigged court. He's put there to do a job on Trump."
Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential front-runner, has maintained his innocence in the case and said it is part of an effort by the Department of Justice to interfere in the election. He claimed on Monday without citing evidence that the DOJ was working in coordination with New York Attorney General Letitia James, who filed the sweeping lawsuit against Trump following a three-year investigation.
Engoron, who is presiding over the trial, said, according to CNN, that it is expected to last through Dec. 22.
Trump repeatedly denounced Engoron as a "disgrace."
"This is a judge that should be disbarred," Trump said. "This is a judge that should be out of office. This is a judge that some people say could be charged criminally for what he's doing. He's interfering with an election, and it's a disgrace."
The lawsuit cuts to the heart of Trump, a New York native who rose to fame through his real estate ventures. Engoron's ruling strips Trump of his business certificates in New York, and James is now seeking $250 million and additional penalties that would destroy Trump and the Trump Organization's ability to do any business in New York.
Trump's anger was apparent on Monday as he spoke to reporters in the morning, afternoon, and at the conclusion of the day.
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Trump was not required to appear in person for the proceedings. Asked by a reporter why he did, he replied, "Because I want to watch this witch hunt myself."
"I've been going through a witch hunt for years, but this is really now getting dirty between Jack Smith and between all of these DOJ people helping them along," Trump said. "This is a pure witch hunt for purposes of interfering with the elections of the United States of America. It's totally illegal."