Former President Donald Trump has once again stirred controversy and provoked backlash by sharing a supporter’s suggestion that a New York judge and attorney general should be placed under citizen’s arrest for their roles in the civil fraud trial against Trump and his company.
The supporter, who goes by the name of “The Real Deal,” wrote on Trump’s social media platform, Trump Truth, that he had a “fantasy” of seeing Judge Arthur Engoron and New York Attorney General Leticia James handcuffed and taken away by Trump supporters. Trump reposted the message and added his own comment: “This is what should happen to these two very dishonest people. They are a disgrace to our Country!”
Legal experts said that Trump’s post could amount to an incitement to violence and a violation of the judge’s and the attorney general’s constitutional rights.
The civil fraud trial, which began on November 1, 2023, is the first time that a former president has testified in a court case while facing criminal charges in another jurisdiction. Trump and his company are accused of inflating the value of their assets to obtain loans and tax benefits. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has called the case a “witch hunt” and a “hoax.”
Relevant articles:
– Trump Shares Creepy ‘Fantasy’ About Citizen’s Arrest of Trial Judge, Attorney General, Yahoo News, 11/14/2023
– “This is an actual incitement”: Legal experts alarmed after Trump pushes “citizen’s arrest”, Yahoo News, 11/14/2023
– Trump Shares Suggestion For N.Y. Judge And Attorney General To Face ‘Citizen’s Arrest’—Latest Attack During Fraud Trial, MSN, 11/14/2023
– Trump fanatics threaten citizen’s arrest against anyone who pokes ex-president’s ‘fragile psyche’: conservative, Raw Story, 12/14/2023