A federal judge has ruled that ex-US president Donald Trump and one of his attorneys must pay a combined penalty of nearly $1 million for filing a baseless lawsuit that accused former state secretary Hillary Clinton, the Democratic National Committee, and other perceived enemies of the former president of being involved in racketeering and conspiring against him.
The lawsuit was dismissed in September, and Trump was ordered to pay tens of thousands of dollars in November after one defendant sought sanctions. The recent order came after a group of the remaining defendants, including Clinton, requested sanctions as well, as per a report from Guardian.
This marks another legal defeat for Trump as he faces various civil and criminal investigations, including an inquiry into his handling of sensitive documents, and some of his lawyers are also being investigated for their actions in these cases.
The US District Court judge, Donald Middlebrooks, issued a strong ruling against Donald Trump and his attorney, Alina Habba, for misusing the legal system by filing a lawsuit that apparently aimed to advance his political grievances related to the 2017 Russia investigation.
The judge stated that the lawsuit was baseless, factually and legally, and was filed with the intent of causing harm. In his 46-page order, Middlebrooks imposed sanctions of $937,989.39 against Trump and Habba. The lawsuit, filed by Trump in March 2022, claimed that Clinton and the Democratic National Committee had conspired with high-ranking FBI officials and others before the 2016 election to fabricate connections between the Trump campaign and Russia with the intention of damaging his political prospects.
Judge said Trump’s allegation that Comey and Clinton conspired were ‘incorrect’
The judge, Donald Middlebrooks, dismissed the case filed by Donald Trump as it was found to be an obstruction of justice, including allegations that were known to be false and without foundation. The legal arguments, including racketeering and conspiracy, were found to be baseless.
The judge noted that Trump’s allegations that former FBI Director James Comey conspired with Clinton to prosecute him were incorrect as Trump was never prosecuted. Such a conspiracy was also deemed implausible since Comey had likely damaged Clinton’s 2016 campaign by reopening the investigation into her emails. The judge stated that the pleadings in this lawsuit were abusive litigation tactics and were filed to advance a political narrative rather than to address any legal harm caused by the defendants.
