legal issues
Trump Organization lawyers meet with NY prosecutors as Trump defends company's 'standard practice'
Trump Organization lawyers met with New York prosecutors on Monday, laying out their arguments for why the company should not face criminal charges over its financial dealings, three people familiar with the matter told The Washington Post.
The Post reported on Sunday that prosecutors gave the Trump Organization's legal team until Monday to deliver their arguments. This is a common practice in financial investigations, with the defense able to bring forward new evidence.
After launching an investigation more than two years ago, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. convened a grand jury earlier this year to consider indictments against the Trump Organization. As of Monday night, no charges have been announced. Former President Donald Trump released a statement in response to the investigation, accusing prosecutors of being "in search of a crime." Without elaborating, he also said they are focusing on "things that are standard practice throughout the U.S. business community, and in no way a crime."
Trump attorney Ron Fischetti told The Associated Press and Politico on Monday that he believes charges will be filed in connection with whether Trump Organization executives paid proper taxes on benefits Trump gave them, like free apartments and leased cars. During a brief interview, Fischetti told the Post he was not at the Monday meeting with prosecutors.
People familiar with the New York investigation said prosecutors have been looking into whether Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg paid taxes on the benefits he received from Trump, and they wanted him to cooperate with a broader probe into the Trump Organization's financial practices. In his Monday statement, Trump said prosecutors "will do anything to frighten people into making up the stories or lies that they want, but have been totally unable to get."