Former President Donald Trump’s New York legal team suffered a blow in court Monday when judge Arthur Engoron blocked their “untimely” and “inappropriate” request to call an independent monitor to the witness stand, according to a new report.
The ruling arrived shortly after defense lawyer Clifford Robert announced his intention to call Trump Organization monitor and former federal Judge Barbara Jones to testify in the $250 million civil trial, ABC News reports.
Engoron ruled Jones and her staff were barred from testifying as “arms of the court” and raised concerns about a conflict of interest connected to her role as monitor, according to the report.
"I hereby preclude their testimony," Engoron reportedly said.
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Jones has served as the Trump Organization's independent monitor since 2022 at the request of New York Attorney General Letitia James, who accuses Trump of fraudulently inflating the worth of his assets.
Trump denies wrongdoing.
The Messenger report Adam Klasfeld noted Monday that Jones wrote in an August report that the Trump Organization provided "incomplete" information.
Jones appears in Engoron’s summary judgment which found Trump liable for fraud before the trial began, court records show.
"Even with a preliminary injunction in place, and with an independent monitor overseeing their compliance,” the order reads, “defendants have continued to disseminate false and misleading information while conducting business.”
