New: Trump Org Indictment Coming “This Week”?

The N.Y. D.A. is making moves

Hi!

Welcome back to my newsletter! The Trump Organization is about to face a criminal legal reckoning—according to Trump’s own lawyers.

My new piece on that is below, and you can always subscribe here to receive the newsletter every week:

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The criminal investigation of the Trump Org is about to boil over.

That’s what Trump’s own lawyers are saying. It’s what other independent sources are saying. 

And it’s become increasingly clear from clues emerging from the grand jury investigation in New York. Consider new reports like this:

New York prosecutors.. are likely to issue one or more criminal indictments this week.” (Reuters)

A trump lawyer says they expect “charges to come this week or next.” (Politico)

There are many more reports and headlines like that.

Signs also point to an indictment of not only a top Trump Org executive, but of a corporate indictment of the company itself, or part of the company.

That’s a legal path I’ve reported on The Beat and outlined in this newsletter. It may become crucial in Manhattan D.A. Cy Vance’s legal quest for Trump accountability.

Corporations are *not* people

The idea of indicting a corporation may sound strange. Corporations are not literally people (despite Mitt Romney’s famous claim).

Under the law, however, a corporation can be indicted.

That means it can be convicted, and dismantled — the corporate equivalent of capital punishment.

There are signs that the D.A. will indict the Trump Organization, or parts of it, as the opening shot in this case. A Trump lawyer says the D.A. suggested that, saying:

We expect charges for a ‘couple of Trump Org employees who didn't declare taxes on fringe benefits,’ and the company itself also could be charged.

A corporate indictment can put huge pressure on the company and its owner. Some may think this sounds like a “slap on the wrist,” given the many accusations and improprieties documented about Trump. He certainly has been accused of financial misconduct throughout his adult life.

It’s worth remembering, though, whenever we hear about that, it’s not “Trump as a person.” He does most of it through The Trump Organization. Pressing (or dismantling) that company, or part of it, leads back to Trump himself.

Cy Vance. c/o Jeenah Moon/Getty Images

As for how prosecutors decide this kind of call, it’s a high bar. Under the law, it’s not enough to find evidence of a single crime at the company. 

D.A. Vance must weigh factors like whether Trump Org:

• has been doing lots of crime

• has committed other past misconduct

• has voluntarily admitted and fixed the problems

• has obstructed legal investigations

• employs many innocent people who would be hurt by corporate charges

Now, you might say, okay Ari, but where is this list from?

The D.A.’s office has formal guidance on this, written by Vance’s former deputy, prosecutor Dan Alonso. (You may recognize the name from MSNBC appearances).

And here’s what he told me about the case for indicting Trump Org:

It's unlikely that the Trump Organization has fulfilled the various requirements... They haven't self-reported. They haven't cooperated… Given all the considerations, [there’s] no reason not to charge the [entire] Trump Organization.

Charging the company, like pressing senior executives, may also put more pressure on resistant Trump loyalists to cooperate.

So there is a conventional legal case — does the company meet the requirements for indictment? — and a strategic one — if warranted, does this move give prosecutors more leverage to get cooperation and evidence that can lead up the line?

If the D.A. indicts the entire company, it stands to reason he is interested in legal accountability for its founder and namesake.

P.S. If you want to hear more about what I’m doing with this newsletter, and other entires about Jerry Garcia, check out this entry!

P.P.S. Here’s my recent interview with D.A. Vance’s Deputy Alonso, on corporate indictments and also the possible use of RICO laws: