A New York appeals court on MondayĀ reducedĀ the $454 million that former President Donald Trump was required to put up while he appeals his civil fraud case. Now Trump must put up, by April 4, a mere $175 million. The trouble is, he may not get a bond for that amount, either. Should that happen, this act of judicial mercy will end up feeling to Trump like a curse.
The stay deprives Trump of the only argument on which he was gaining any traction at allāthat the amount the court required him to put up was excessively high. Four hundred and fifty-four million was indeed an unusually large judgment against a private corporation or individual. (The distinction between Trump andĀ the Trump OrganizationĀ is paper-thin.) Mondayās appeals court decision doesnāt reduce that judgment, as New York State Attorney General Letitia James pointed out in a written statement. But it does dramatically reduce the amount Trump needs to turn over to the state while he pursues his appeal. It also gives us some hint that the appeals court may reduceĀ Judge Arthur Engoronās $454 million judgmentĀ to, well, $175 million.
I suppose Iām not understanding the argument that a relatively slow appeals process violates someoneās right to a speedy trial. By definition, if youāre appealing, youāve already had a trial and lost.
I do think we are incarcerating too many people, but serving time while waiting on an appeal doesnāt inherently violate someoneās right to a speedy trial.
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A personās guilt is established at the original trial.
An appeal is an attempt to prove that the original trial committed an error. Until an error is proven, the person is treated as every other guilty person.