A judge ruled on Friday that former Donald Trump advisor Steve Bannon must stand trial in New York on criminal fraud charges related to fundraising for the U.S.-Mexico border wall.
According to Reuters, Justice April Newbauer’s decision to reject Bannon’s motion to dismiss the charges clears the way for a trial set to begin on December 9, just six weeks after his expected release from federal prison. Bannon is currently serving a four-month sentence for defying a congressional subpoena.
Bannon, 70, was charged with money laundering and conspiracy by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office in September 2022 for allegedly deceiving donors who gave over $15 million to the “We Build the Wall” fundraising campaign.
The indictment alleges that Bannon assured donors that all their money would be used for building Trump’s wall, but he secretly diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars to the fundraising drive’s chief executive, Brian Kolfage, a decorated U.S. Air Force veteran who had pledged not to take a salary.
Bannon pleaded not guilty. In a motion to dismiss filed by his lawyers on December 6, 2023, they argued that Bannon transferred some funds to entities controlled by Kolfage to reimburse him for reasonable expenses. They also claimed that the organization constructed more than three miles (4.8 km) of the border wall in New Mexico and Texas.
Bannon’s attorneys argued that he didn’t refuse to cooperate but that there had been uncertainty about the dates for him to do so.
An appeals court panel upheld his conviction, and the Supreme Court rejected his last-minute bid to delay his prison term while his appeal plays out further.
He turned himself in July 1 to start serving his time, calling himself a “political prisoner” and slamming Attorney General Merrick Garland.
Earlier, in making his motion for acquittal before Judge Nichols, Bannon attorney Corcoran said that “no reasonable juror could conclude that Bannon refused to comply.”
Once the motion was made the defense rested its case without putting on any witnesses, telling Nichols that Bannon saw no point in testifying since the judge’s previous rulings had gutted his planned avenues of defense. Among other things, Bannon’s team was barred from claiming Bannon believed he was shielded by executive privilege or calling as witnesses House Speaker Nancy Pelosi or members of the House panel.
