"Ivanka Trump charged with major crime.”
Stand up for the facts!
Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.
I would like to contribute
No, Ivanka Trump is not facing any criminal charges
If Your Time is short
-
Neither Ivanka Trump, nor her brothers, are facing any criminal charges.
-
The Trump Organization was reinstated on Feb. 14 as a defendant in a civil lawsuit brought by Washington, D.C.’s attorney general.
-
That lawsuit alleges that Trump’s inaugural committee misspent nonprofit money at the Trump International Hotel in D.C. to benefit the Trump organization.
A recent court ruling in a civil lawsuit involving the Trump Organization prompted one Facebook user to post a video where he told viewers that Ivanka Trump and her adult brothers are now facing new criminal charges.
"Ivanka Trump CHARGED with MAJOR CRIME," reads the title of a video posted on Feb. 15 by Adela News. In it, the narrator says a news story has "flown under the radar" and shows that Ivanka Trump and her brothers are facing "brand-new criminal charges" related to their work with the Trump organization and their father’s inauguration.
The post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
No one in the Trump family, or elsewhere, is facing criminal charges in this case, or any other.
The court ruling is from a civil lawsuit brought in January 2020 by Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine.
In that suit, Racine accused the Trump Organization, the Trump International Hotel and Trump’s 2017 inaugural committee of misusing $1 million in nonprofit money by overpaying for the use of the hotel’s ballrooms, which benefited the Trump family. Racine is seeking to have the money paid back and redistributed to charities.
In November 2021, D.C. Superior Court Judge José M. López threw out part of the lawsuit, but left in the allegation that "the nonprofit inaugural committee had misused assets for the Trump family’s private gain," the Washington Post reported, allowing the lawsuit to move forward. He also dismissed the Trump Organization as a defendant, ruling that the district did not have jurisdiction.
The case was later transferred to a new judge, Yvonne Williams, who on Feb. 14 ruled that López’s decision to drop the Trump Organization as a defendant was "erroneous."
Featured Fact-check
Racine celebrated the judge’s ruling, on Twitter, writing that the lawsuit is "moving forward fully intact" and is "going to trial."
While it is possible that Trump’s adult children, Ivanka, Eric or Donald Jr., could be called to testify in the case due to their work in the Trump Organization, it is not a criminal matter. None of the three are singled out as defendants in the case.
The article from Raw Story that the Facebook video narrator quotes from does not mention criminal charges, and the narrator himself says near the end of the video that "this may not be the kind of trial that sends you to jail; it’s not necessarily that kind of crime, but it is the sort of crime where you’ll have to face a penalty, you’re going to get a record," which he says could be damaging to their reputation.
Our ruling
A Facebook video claims that Ivanka Trump and her brothers are facing criminal charges in a case involving the Trump Organization, the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., and the Trump Inaugural Committee.
That case stemmed from a civil lawsuit filed by D.C.’s attorney general in 2020. The Trump Organization had been removed as a defendant in the case in November but was reinstated this week by a different judge.
No one has been criminally charged in this case. We rate this claim False.
Staff researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.
Our Sources
Facebook post, Feb. 15, 2022
Raw Story, "'Now we're going to trial': Trump kids suffer major legal blow in DC inauguration investigation," Feb. 15, 2022
Daily Beast, "Valentine’s Day Really Sucked for the Trump Organization," Feb. 14, 2022
CNN, "Trump Organization reinstated as defendant in DC AG's case against Trump's inaugural committee," Feb. 15, 2022
CNN, "Part of DC lawsuit against Trump's inaugural committee moves toward trial," Nov. 8, 2021
Business Insider, "A judge just handed Trump a major loss in the DC attorney general's lawsuit over inauguration funds as the case heads to trial," Feb. 15, 2022
Politico, "D.C. sues Trump organization, alleging inflated inaugural party bills," Jan. 22, 2020
Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, "AG Racine Sues Presidential Inaugural Committee and Trump Entities for Abusing Nonprofit Funds to Enrich Trump Family," Jan 22, 2020
The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Civil Division, "Order granting motion for reconsideration in part and denying in part," Feb. 14, 2022
The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Civil Division, "Complaint for equitable relief, including constructive trust, over improperly spent funds of nonprofit corporation," Jan. 22, 2020
The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Civil Division, "Omnibus order," Nov. 8, 2021
Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine, tweet on Feb. 14, 2022
Washington Post, "Judge tosses D.C. AG’s claim that Trump inaugural committee ‘wasted’ $1 million at president’s hotel," Nov. 8, 2021
Washington Post, "D.C. attorney general sues Trump inaugural committee over $1 million booking at president’s hotel," Jan. 22, 2020
Browse the Truth-O-Meter
More by Jeff Cercone
No, Ivanka Trump is not facing any criminal charges
Support independent fact-checking.
Become a member!
In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.