Trump Organization Lost Secret Trial And Was Held In Contempt For Hindering Probe, Court Records Reveal

As per court records made public Tuesday, the Trump Organization impeded a grand jury probe in 2021 by repeatedly failing to turn over evidence on time.

Former President Donald Trump’s company was held in contempt of court last year after losing a secret one-day trial over its refusal to comply with court orders and grand jury subpoenas, reported Business Insider. The trial was held on Oct. 7, 2021, by judge Juan Merchan after Trump's company failed to comply with three court orders and four grand jury subpoenas. He issued his ruling on Dec. 8 last year.

Merchan wrote that examining the record as a whole, there, can be no doubt that the Trump Organization's "failures amount to willful disobedience." He said that despite clear warnings, the company missed deadlines, "never moving to quash subpoenas and never seeking court intervention." He noted that some "subpoenas went largely ignored and another was ignored entirely."

The company’s name was blacked out in the court record that was released Tuesday. But the details in the decision and the manner in which the court record was unsealed by the judge made it clear who was involved in it. Frustrated with the company’s lack of compliance, Manhattan prosecutors, had sought “coercive sanctions” of $60,000 per day, said Merchan.

Lawyers of the Trump Organization argued that the company had been providing a steady stream of records. They noted that at one point, it totaled more than 3.5 million pages of records. But Merchan said that was “just enough to fend off” the prosecution’s request for penalties “while never fully meeting any of the deadlines.”

In July 2021, the Manhattan District Attorney's office brought criminal fraud charges against the Trump Organization, which was found guilty at trial earlier this month. After being convicted, the company faces a fine of up to $1.6 million.

Meanwhile, in April, a judge held Trump in contempt and fined him $110,000 for not being fast in responding to a civil subpoena that was issued by New York’s attorney general, reported the Associated Press. The list of Trump's legal battles doesn't end there. He has also been under investigation for keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida.