Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial will go on after lawyers seek early verdict ending case

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and JENNIFER PELTZ
Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s lawyers have been thwarted in their longshot bid to put an immediate end to the New York civil fraud trial that threatens the former president’s real estate empire. The judge didn’t rule on the request Thursday but indicated that the trial will go on as scheduled Monday with Donald Trump Jr. returning to the stand as the first defense witness. The ex-president’s lawyers had asked Judge Arthur Engoron to skip the rest of the trial and issue a verdict clearing him, his company and top executives , including Trump Jr., of wrongdoing. They made the request at the halfway point in the trial of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit, arguing that state lawyers had failed to prove their case.