Judge Engoron Decision Against Donald Trump Sparks MAGA Fury: 'Despicable'

Supporters of former President Donald Trump have reacted angrily after the judge proceeding over his civil fraud trial denied his request to delay the closing arguments in the trial because of the death of his mother-in-law.

On Thursday, the final arguments take place in the civil fraud trial brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, accusing the Republican and top executives at The Trump Organization, including his adult sons Eric and Donald Jr., of inflating the value of assets to obtain favorable loans.

In September, Judge Arthur Engoron issued a partial summary judgment in the civil fraud trial, ruling that Trump and top executives committed fraud. The rest of the trial will determine how much the Republican will pay in damages, as well as rule on six other accusations—including falsifying business records, insurance fraud and conspiracy claims.

On Tuesday, Donald Trump's wife, Melania Trump, announced on X, formerly Twitter, that her mother Amalija Knavs had died at the age of 78, with the former president paying tribute to "an incredible woman" on Truth Social. No cause of death was provided.

"This is a very sad night for the entire Trump family!!!" the 77-year-old wrote on Truth Social. "Melania's great and beautiful mother, Amalija, has just gone to a beautiful place in the sky. She was an incredible woman, and will be missed far beyond words!"

The former president's lawyer, Chris Kise, then wrote to Engoron to relay the news, and requested a postponement to January 29 for closing arguments "so that he may attend and participate in the Court proceedings," according to emails between the lawyer and judge.

The judge on Wednesday in an email told Kise he was "sorry" to hear about Trump's mother-in-law but denied the postponement request.

Kise replied: "Despite the fact that his Mother-in-Law, who he was very close to, passed away last late night, President Trump will be speaking tomorrow."

Newsweek contacted representatives for Trump and Engoron by email to comment on this story.

Reacting to the decision, Republicans and MAGA figures posted their complaints on social media.

New York Republican Representative Elise Stefanik called the decision "despicable."

Claudia Tenney, another New York Republican representative, called the decision "contemptible."

"As a NY lawyer and daughter of a long time serving NYS Supreme Court Justice, judges universally accommodate parties and/or their lawyers for unavoidable personal issues especially the death of a family member. Judge Engoron's contemptible decision to hold closing arguments immediately following @melaniatrump's mother passing away is another instance of hostility and bias against President Trump," Tenney wrote.

Montana Republican Senator Steve Daines accused Engoron of pursuing a "political agenda."

"This trial has been a joke from the beginning and not delaying it because of a death in the immediate family only solidifies Judge Engoron's political agenda," Daines wrote.

Another MAGA account questioned why it was "legal" and called for Engoron to be "disbarred and sued."

However others, including Democrat supporting influencer Joanne Carducci, better known as JoJoFromJerz, questioned why Trump had requested a delay in his trial but agreed to a Fox News town hall in Iowa on Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, Engoron also barred Trump from personally making a closing argument at his trial because of missing deadlines during an email discussion in which he and Kise clashed over what the Republican would be allowed to say.