New York AG Calls On Judge To Fine Donald Trump $10,000 A Day For Contempt Of Court

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a petition in state court Thursday for former President Donald Trump to be fined $10,000 for every day he refuses to comply with a subpoena for documents into his family business.

James’ office submitted a court filing that said Trump refused to abide by an agreement to supply requested documents for her investigation by March 31. In the filing, James accused Trump of trying to evade compliance with the subpoena and demanded the court compel him to change course.

"The judge’s order was crystal clear: Donald J Trump must comply with our subpoena and turn over relevant documents to my office. Instead of obeying a court order, Mr Trump is trying to evade it. We are seeking the court’s immediate intervention because no one is above the law," James said in a statement.

This move marks the latest turn in a legal saga that began during Trump’s time in the White House. James’ investigation has become emblematic of Trump’s post-presidential legal woes and has taken on the tone of a personal feud.

James’ office has been working with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in an investigation into allegations that the Trump Organization purposely misled New York authorities about the value of its assets to attain more favorable loans. To this end, state and city prosecutors have fought against Trump’s legal team to access the company’s financial records, a fight that has gone all the way to the Supreme Court.

Both investigations include a criminal and civil law angle, but only the Manhattan district attorney has pursued charges against the Trump Organization and its chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg. The office reportedly was considering an indictment against Trump himself, but the case has been hobbled by internal disagreements that saw two prosecutors in the case retire after Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg expressed hesitance on an indictment.

Trump has been vocal about his opposition to the probe. At one rally in January, Trump accused the prosecutors of being racially motivated — James and Bragg are Black — and fueled by political vitriol against him.

“These prosecutors are vicious, horrible people. They're racists and they're very sick -- they're mentally sick," Trump told a crowd of supporters in Cullerton, Texas. "They're going after me without any protection of my rights from the Supreme Court or most other courts. In reality, they're not after me, they're after you."

In a hearing before a state judge in February, one of Trump's attorneys launched a tirade against James, repeating Trump's accusation that she is more motivated by politics than the law.

The judge on Feb. 18 ruled in favor of the office of the New York Attorney General and ordered Trump to testify in the case against his company.