<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1655238711071,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"0000017d-00b6-db7d-abfd-7cb766d10000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1655238711071,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"0000017d-00b6-db7d-abfd-7cb766d10000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_55214730", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1032401"} }); ","_id":"00000181-63ea-dd13-a9fb-7bee54a60000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedThe New York Court of Appeals dashed former President Donald Trump‘s hopes of avoiding a deposition in the state attorney general’s investigation into his business practices.
On Tuesday, the state’s highest court rejected his appeal of a prior appellate court ruling that ordered him to comply with a subpoena from Attorney General Letitia James to testify next month.
TRUMP REQUIRED TO TESTIFY OVER NEW YORK CIVIL INVESTIGATION AFTER LOSING APPEAL
“On the Court’s own motion, appeal dismissed, without costs, upon the ground that no substantial constitutional question is directly involved. Motion for a stay dismissed as academic,” the court wrote.
Trump sought a stay from the high court to block the appellate court ruling temporarily, but the state appeals court said there was no “substantial constitutional question” to that ruling. Trump also requested a stay of the subpoena, but the court rejected that as well, underscoring the fact it was not considering his appeal.
James has been conducting a civil inquiry into the business practices of the Trump Organization and has sought testimony from Trump. As of last week, the former president, along with two of his children, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump, were slated to testify July 15 unless the appeals court swooped in, per court filings.
The high court’s ruling Tuesday marks the latest in a string of legal setbacks for the former president. In April, he was slapped with a $10,000-per-day contempt of court penalty for not turning over key documents from his business that James’s office had subpoenaed — something he unsuccessfully tried to block in court. Last month, he doled out $110,000 in fines for the contempt ruling after handing over some of the material James subpoenaed in apparent compliance with the court order.
Then came the appellate court’s decision, which determined that James’s office had the authority to compel him to answer questions for her investigation.
James commenced the inquiry after former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen testified before Congress that the Trump Organization improperly manipulated its asset valuations for tax and business purposes. She has argued in court that the inquiry uncovered evidence of the company engaging in such practices, including with the company’s skyscrapers and golf courses.
The Washington Examiner reached out to representatives for James and Donald Trump for comment.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Donald Trump has repeatedly disparaged James’s inquiry as being politically motivated and denied any wrongdoing, panning the inquiry as a “witch hunt.” James has been steadfast in her legal pursuit of subpoenas from him.
On Monday, she indicated the public hearing held by the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot provided grounds for additional investigation of Donald Trump in her state. The specifics she was referring to were not immediately clear. One accusation against the former president levied during the hearing was that he misled donors with his so-called Election Defense Fund, procuring hundreds of millions of dollars under the pretense that the money would be used to challenge the 2020 election but then using it for other purposes.
