Ivanka Trump could land her family in deep trouble if she pleads the Fifth Amendment in her father Donald Trump's New York fraud trial, former federal prosecutor Barbara McQuade has said.
Ivanka is resisting a subpoena to give evidence, but a legal experts told Newsweek that she may soon have to make an appearance in the case.
Speaking to Charles Coleman Jr. on MSNBC on Sunday, McQuade said that the protection from self-incrimination offered by the Fifth Amendment will not protect a defendant in a civil case.
Ivanka Trump was originally named as a defendant in New York Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit. It accuses Donald Trump, his children and the Trump Organization of fraudulently inflating the value of their assets on financial documents to obtain more-favorable business deals and increase the former president's net worth. Trump, who is the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has denied any wrongdoing and has called the trial politically motivated. Newsweek has sought comment from attorneys for Ivanka and Donald Trump.
An appeals court dismissed Ivanka from the case in June and said the claims against her were barred by the statute of limitations. Her lawyers argued in court submissions last week that Ivanka is no longer a defendant in the case and should therefore not have to give deposition testimony.
McQuade added that, while a witness may use the Fifth Amendment in a civil case to protect themselves from criminal indictment, the civil court judge is entitled to draw an adverse inference from their silence when making a decision in the civil case.
"Anything they say under oath could be used against them in some subsequent criminal case," McQuade said. "If they believe they have exposure, they can invoke it [the Fifth Amendment]. But what's different about a civil case from a criminal case is that in this case, Judge [Arthur] Engoron could use that invocation to draw an adverse inference against the witness....
