Last week's ruling dropping the bond amount for former President Donald Trump from $454 million to $175 million was a "big victory" because it signifies the court will eventually reduce his fines as well, Alan Dershowitz, a professor emeritus at Harvard Law School, said on Newsmax on Sunday.
"They had to [reduce the fine] because it's unconstitutional," Dershowitz told Newsmax's "Sunday Agenda." "The Eighth Amendment prohibits excessive fines. This fine is excessive by every possible standard. There were no damages; there was no harm."
He added that not only will the appellate court reduce the fines, but it is sending a signal that says it will set a bond that will more closely reflect the ultimate judgment in the case."
After the bond was reduced, New York Attorney General Letitia James released a statement saying that Trump is "still facing accountability for his staggering fraud" and that the initial judgment against Trump still stands.
But Dershowitz pointed out that James had made a campaign promise to target Trump.
"No elected prosecutor should ever ethically be allowed to campaign on the theory that she's going to get somebody, that she's going target him," he said. "She said that before she even knew the evidence. This is part of a broad campaign to get Trump. That applies as well to [special counsel] Jack Smith and to Fani Willis."
Dershowitz added that he believes the Supreme Court will have to eventually rule on some of the Trump cases.
"The Manhattan case involving Alvin Bragg and the hush payments is the weakest criminal case I've ever seen in 60 years of practicing and teaching criminal law," he said. "I can't imagine that the appellate court will uphold that. But you know, it's New York, particularly Manhattan, where the voting against Trump was overwhelming, and so we'll have to wait and see if justice is done."
Meanwhile, Bragg's hush money case is set for trial on April 15, with Trump's attorneys arguing they need more time to go through documents released by federal prosecutors.
Dershowitz said it's unlikely they will get another extension.
He also commented on the Georgia case against Trump and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' testimony about her relationship with a special prosecutor, who has since stepped down.
"If justice were to prevail, she would be put on trial for perjury or conspiracy to commit perjury for witness tampering and for obstruction of justice," he said. "What she did is far, far worse than anything she accused Trump's people of doing."
The case in Georgia, which involves accusations of election interference, will be defended through the First Amendment right to protest against the results of an election and the right to seek alternate electors, he added.
"The difference between political speech on the one hand, and comparing something to a crime is a very important one to preserve, and I hope the courts do also," Dershowitz concluded.
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Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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