Opinion | The author's opinion does not necessarily reflect Sarah Palin's view.
Former President Donald Trump’s legal team filed court documents to have Judge Arthur Engoron removed from a civil fraud case in New York due to alleged “prohibited communications” with an outside party about the case.
The team seeks to appeal Engoron’s ruling that found Trump guilty and ordered substantial payment to the state.
Citing an interview where a real estate lawyer claimed to have spoken to Engoron during the trial, Trump’s lawyers argued that the judge’s actions violated judicial responsibilities and raised concerns of misconduct, leading to the demand for Engoron’s removal from the case.
“I actually had the ability to speak to him three weeks ago,” lawyer Adam Bailey said. “I saw him in the corner [at the courthouse] and I told my client, ‘I need to go.’ And I walked over and we started talking … I wanted him to know what I think and why…I really want him to get it right.”
Trump’s lawyers noted that the allegations were “fundamentally incompatible with the responsibilities attendant to donning the black robe and sitting in judgment.”
“Specifically, this Court has been publicly accused of engaging in prohibited communications regarding the merits of this case, in clear violation of the Code and this Court’s solemn oath,” they wrote.
“In sum, this Court appears to have proceeded not only in contravention of controlling law and the Constitution, but perhaps also contrary to the governing standards of judicial conduct. The gravity of these public allegations of potential misconduct is underscored by the fact that this Court, based upon public reporting, is also now apparently under investigation by the Commission on Judicial Conduct (the ‘Commission’).”
