In a sworn affidavit, former President Donald Trump stated that he has no records sought by the New York Attorney General’s Office, but the court handling the case refused to dismiss his contempt finding and $10,000 daily sentence.
“To the best of my knowledge, I I do not have any of the documents requested in the subpoena dated December 1, 2021 in my personal possession; and (ii) if any documents responsive to the subpoena exist, I believe they are in the possession or custody of the Trump Organization,” Trump’s affidavit stated.
“I have authorized, and will continue to authorize, the release of a responsive document to the Office of the Attorney General at all relevant times,” Trump wrote in the document.
The same document that contained the affidavit also includes a detailed evaluation of the processes used to locate the documents in question by Trump’s counsel.
Judge Arthur Engoron, on the other hand, was unsatisfied, and dismissed Trump’s plea to have the contempt finding and sentence vacated.
In response to the ruling, Trump attorney Alina Habba said, “This Court has wrongfully held my client in contempt for a violation that he did not commit solely because the OAG labeled it ‘insufficient’ without any reason.” “We will pursue our appeal of the Court’s erroneous interpretation of both law and fact with zeal.”
According to the judge’s ruling, “the affirmations submitted by counsel for Mr. Trump are insufficient in that they fail to specify who searched for each respective request, when, where, and using what search protocols; it is not sufficient simply to attach a list of people who participated in the searches; it is not sufficient simply to attach a list of people who participated in the searches.”
“Mr. Trump’s personal affidavit… fails to state where he kept his files, how his files were stored in the usual course of business, who had access to such files… and, significantly, where he believes such files are currently housed,” according to the judgement.
The subpoena was issued as part of a civil probe of Trump’s real estate company by the attorney general.
