A New York judge denied former President Donald Trump’s motion for a mistrial in his New York civil fraud case on Friday, according to multiple reports.
Judge Arthur Engoron rejected the arguments Trump raised in his Wednesday motion as “utterly without merit,” according to CNBC. Trump’s motion pointed to “tangible and overwhelming” evidence of bias, explaining that “only the grant of a mistrial can salvage what is left of the rule of law.”
The motion alleged Engoron was “co-judging” with his law clerk Allison Greenfield, who had engaged in “extensive, public partisan activities,” and publicly commented on the trial by posting links to articles “disparaging parties and counsel” on a Wheatley School newsletter he maintains.
“As I have made clear over the course of this trial, my rulings are mine and mine alone,” Engoron said, according to Bloomberg Law. “There is absolutely no ‘co-judging’ at play.”
Trump’s motion also attacked a gag order Engoron issued blocking Trump from speaking publicly about members of his staff, which a New York appeals judge temporarily lifted Thursday.