New York appeals court reduces bond in Trump business fraud case

An appeals court in New York has reduced the bond in former President Donald Trump’s business fraud case to $175 million from $464.576 million. Trump, his sons, and business associate now have 10 days to pay the reduced bond or risk avoiding asset seizure by the New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The appellate panel under the New York Supreme Court granted the ten-day period for Trump to come up with the smaller bond. Trump has stated his respect for the decision and assured that the cash or a bond will be put up quickly. His lawyers had argued earlier that it was impossible to post the full bond and had proposed a reduced amount of $100 million instead.

Despite the reduced bond, the judgment of $464 million plus interest against Trump and the other defendants in the case still stands. The ruling was delivered by Judge Arthur F. Engoron on February 16 with severe penalties for Trump and the other defendants. The appeals court has also temporarily stayed the enforcement of some parts of the previous ruling related to business activities in New York.

In another development, Judge Juan Merchan announced that the criminal trial against Trump for election interference will begin on April 15 with jury selection. Trump faces charges of falsifying business records during the 2016 presidential campaign to make “hush-money” payments to Stormy Daniels, a porn star. The trial was originally scheduled to start on March 25, but Trump’s motion to dismiss the indictment or delay the trial further was rejected.