10:12 a.m. ET, November 2, 2023
Donald Trump Jr. is back on the stand today. Here’s what he testified about on Wednesday
By CNN’s Lauren del Valle, Kara Scannell and Jeremy Herb
In this courtroom sketch, Donald Trump Jr. testifies on the stand in New York court on November 1.
Christine Cornell
Donald Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., said Wednesday that he was at no time involved in preparing his father’s financial statements — including after his father became president in 2017 and he was named administrator of Donald Trump’s revocable trust. .
Trump Jr. testified for 90 minutes in the civil fraud trial against the family and their business. He will remain on the stand Thursday, followed by his brother, Eric Trump.
During her testimony Wednesday, Deputy Attorney General Colleen Faherty showed Trump Jr. the 2017 financial disclosure statement, which Judge Arthur Engoron previously ruled fraudulent. The former president’s son reiterated that he did not help prepare the declaration that year.
“I haven’t. The accountants worked on it, that’s what we pay them for,” he said.
Trump Jr. also discussed his roles and responsibilities within the Trump Organization since 2001 and as a trustee of the former president’s revocable trust.
While the former president repeatedly attacked the judge on social media, his son Wednesday often struck a jovial tone with the judge, even joking with him at one point about the pace of his responses.
“I’m sorry your honor, I moved to Florida but I kept up with New York,” Don Jr. said, smiling at the judge.
Trump Jr. is named as a defendant in the $250 million lawsuit filed by the New York attorney general’s office against the former president, his company and several executives, including three of his adult children.
The lawsuit accuses Trump Jr. and his brother Eric of knowingly participating in a scheme to inflate their father’s net worth in order to obtain financial benefits such as better loan and insurance terms.
“As executive vice presidents, all three children were intimately involved in the operation of the affairs of the Trump Organization,” the complaint states.
Faherty on Wednesday delved into how licensing had changed in Trump’s financial statements that year, asking Trump Jr. if he had given accountants the $246 million valuation attached to the licensing deals.