Former US federal prosecutor Kristy Greenberg on Wednesday declared that “enough is enough” after a new court filing detailed the “credible” threats that have been received by Judge Arthur Engoron and his law clerk and staff during Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial in New York.
During an interview with MSNBC’s Alex Wagner, Greenberg said it was high time for a “gag order that has teeth” that “will be enforced” against the former president because “this is completely unacceptable.”
A gag order prohibiting Trump from talking about the judge, prosecutors and court staff is currently on pause after a New York Appellate Division judge found it “unconstitutional.” Trump has already been fined $15,000 (£12,000) over two breaches of the order, when it was in place.
The new filing from Charles Hollon, of the Public Safety Department’s Judicial Threats Assessment Unit, argued the gag order should be reimposed on Trump.
It detailed some of the menacing messages.
“You should be not assassin executed. You should be executed. But on trial executed for your crimes,” said one.
A second said: “We are going to get you and anyone of you dirty, backstabbing, lying, cheating American.”
“Trust me when I say this. I will come for you. I don’t care. Ain’t nobody gonna stop me either,” said a third.
“Know that the blood runs red,” warned another.
“The implementation of the limited gag orders resulted in a decrease in the number of threats, harassment, and disparaging messages that the judge and his staff received,” Hollon said in the filing. “However, when Mr Trump violated the gag orders, the number of threatening, harassing and disparaging messages increased.”
“On a daily basis, the judge and his staff are being inundated with hundreds of harassing and threatening phone calls, voicemail messages, and emails, that has resulted in the Judicial Threats Assessment Unit having to constantly reassess and evaluate what security protections to put in place to ensure the safety of the judge and those around him,” Hollon added.
Greenberg described the sampling of messages that were listed in the filing as “vile.”
“The messages against the clerk were wishing for her death and demise, they are sickening,” she told Wagner. “The worst part about it is in the affidavit... they found these were credible violent threats.”
“Every time they found when Donald Trump opened his mouth and threatened and attacked these people, the threats went up,” Greenberg added. “And so, it just, enough is enough already. There just has to be a gag order that has teeth, that will be enforced that’s going to shut him up and stop it. This is completely unacceptable.”
Watch the video here: