Before appealing the recent ruling by Judge Arthur Engoron, former President Donald Trump is required to pay an approximately half-billion-dollar bond to New York State.

This follows the judge’s decision last week that Trump must pay $354 million in fines, which, with interest, amounts to over $450 million for fraud.

Critics have pointed out that Trump is the sole individual ever sued under a little-known New York fraud statute that doesn’t necessitate any actual harm and effectively treats routine real estate valuation practices in negotiations with banks as a criminal offense.

Despite Attorney General Letitia James, who campaigned on targeting Trump, asserting that no one is above the law, this case against Trump stands out as the only one of its kind in the state’s history, Breitbart News reported.

The substantial fine is unprecedented, and Engoron denied Trump the opportunity to present a defense, rendering a guilty verdict via summary judgment for the state.

Written by B.C. Begley