By Michael R. Sisak -
The
Associated Press
Former President Donald Trump responded to questions for nearly seven hours Thursday during his second sworn statement amid a legal battle with the New York attorney general over his company's business practices.
Trump backed down from an early decision to invoke the Fifth Amendment to
keep quiet and protect himself from making self-incriminating statements.
The former president met all day with lawyers for Attorney General Letitia James, who sued Trump last year.
Her lawsuit alleges that Trump and his family misled banks and business partners by giving them false information about his net worth and the value of his hotels and golf courses.
Former President Donald Trump waves as he leaves Trump Tower in New York, Thursday, April 13, 2023.AP
Shortly after Trump entered the skyscraper where James's offices are located, the former president's attorney, Alina Habba, said that Trump "was not only willing to testify but eager to testify."
"He remains resolute in his position that he has nothing to hide and hopes he can teach the attorney general a lesson in the immense success of his multi-billion dollar company
," Habba said in a statement.
The lawsuit does not involve the charges brought against Trump by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, which led to his historic court appearance last week, the first by a former president.
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In a social media post Thursday, Trump called the lawsuit "ridiculous, like all the election interference cases against me."
Trump raised his fist as he left his Trump Tower apartment in the morning.
He arrived in his motorcade at the attorney general's office at about 9:40 am The two parties took a lunch break.
Trump left the deposition before 6:15 p.m. and did not stop to speak to reporters.
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James declined to answer questions about the affidavit at a news conference on a separate topic Wednesday.
Trump had previously met with James's lawyers on August 10, but
refused to answer nearly all questions and
invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 400 times.
At the time, James had not yet filed his lawsuit and it was unclear whether questions about how Trump valued his company would be the basis of his criminal case.
New York Attorney General Letitia James.AP
"If anyone in my position did not take Fifth Amendment protection they would be a fool, an absolute fool
," Trump said in that affidavit, which was videotaped and later released.
Trump predicted that a "rogue" prosecutor would try to build a criminal case based on his answers, if he gave them.
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“A slightly wrong statement or answer, by accident, by mistake, like it was a beautiful sunny day, when in fact it was slightly cloudy, would be received by the authorities at a level rarely seen in this country, because I have experienced it. ", said.
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Since then circumstances have changed.
The criminal charges filed by the Manhattan district attorney centered on how the company internally accounted for payments to a lawyer, Michael Cohen, for work in which he paid people not to go public with stories about extramarital sexual encounters that Trump says they never happened.
The lawsuit filed by James is scheduled to go to trial in October.
Video recordings of Trump's statements could be played at trial, if the lawsuit is not settled.
Thursday's statement was made in private.