Trump could be held in contempt of court — a punishment only one other president faced
Former President Donald Trump could soon again be held in contempt of court, this time in his New York City hush money trial. But he is not be the first president to face this punishment.
On April 16, prosecutors on the case — the first-ever criminal trial of a former American president — asked presiding Judge Juan Merchan to hold Trump in contempt, a legal term signifying disobedience toward the court that can result in fines or even imprisonment.
They argued the former president violated a gag order, which prohibits him from making public statements about witnesses and jurors, according to the Associated Press.
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Specifically, ten of Trump’s posts on Truth Social broke the gag order, prosecutors contended.
In one of the posts, made on April 10, Trump singled out potential witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels, calling them lying “sleaze bags.”
As punishment, prosecutors have requested that he be fined $1,000 for each of the posts, per the outlet.
Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche argued the posts did not violate the gag order because they were responses to “political attacks” and not forms of witness intimidation, according to Reuters. Trump has called the trial “rigged” and a “political witch hunt.”
Merchan is expected to make a decision on the request in the coming days, according to Politico.
Trump was previously held in contempt by a New York court in April 2022 for failing to comply with a subpoena, according to the Associated Press. As a result, he was fined $10,000 per day until the terms of the subpoena were met.
Besides Trump, only one other president has ever been subjected to this type of legal sanction, according to historians.
Clinton held in contempt
President Bill Clinton became the first-ever president to be held in contempt of court near the end of his second term, Lindsay Chervinsky, a presidential historian at the Southern Methodist University, told McClatchy News.
The ruling occurred during a civil lawsuit filed in Arkansas by Paula Jones, a former state employee who claimed Clinton sexually harassed her during his tenure as governor, according to The Washington Post.
The presiding district judge held Clinton in contempt of court on April 13, 1999, for providing “intentionally false” testimony concerning his relationship with one-time White House intern Monica Lewinsky, according to the outlet.
During a deposition in 1998, Clinton said he had not had sexual relations with Lewinsky — a claim he later contradicted before a grand jury.
‘’The court takes no pleasure whatsoever in holding this nation’s President in contempt of court,’‘ the judge wrote, according to The New York Times. But, she added, ‘‘the record demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the President responded to plaintiffs’ questions by giving false, misleading and evasive answers that were designed to obstruct the judicial process.’‘
“Numerous penalties” came in addition to — and following — the ruling, Thomas Balcerski, a presidential historian at Eastern Connecticut State University, told McClatchy News.
Firstly, Clinton was ordered by the judge to pay various fees, including for attorneys and travel costs, according to The Washington Post.
The judge also referred the case to Arkansas state authorities, who held the power to disbar Clinton — himself an attorney — for flying afoul of the profession’s code of conduct.
He was ultimately suspended from practicing law in the state and faced disbarment before the Supreme Court, Balcerski said.
“Given that he was not an active lawyer, these penalties were more in the realm of symbolic punishment,” Balcerski said.
His Arkansas law license suspension, which had a five-year timespan, ended in 2006, according to NBC News.
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