White powder sent to judge in Donald Trump's civil fraud case, adding to wave of security scares
New York (AP/PTI): White powder was found on Wednesday in an envelope addressed to the New York judge who ordered Donald Trump to pay a USD 454 million civil fraud judgment.
It's the latest security scare involving people in key roles in the former president's legal cases.
A court officer screening mail at Judge Arthur Engoron's Manhattan courthouse opened the envelope around 9:30 a.m. Some of the powder fell out of the envelope and landed on the officer's pants, police said.
Preliminary tests were negative for hazardous substances, court spokesperson Al Baker said.
The courthouse operations office where the mail was opened was briefly closed, but the courthouse remained open. The officer and other workers who may have been exposed to the powder were temporarily isolated, Baker said. No injuries were reported.
Engoron had no exposure to the letter or the powdery substance, Baker said.
Wednesday's scare came less than two weeks after Engoron issued his verdict penalising Trump, his company and executives, including his two sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr., for scheming to dupe banks, insurers and others by inflating his wealth on financial statements used to secure loans and make deals.
Along with staggering financial penalties, the judge's ruling forced a shakeup at the top of Trump's company, putting the Trump Organisation under court supervision and imposing strict restrictions on how it does business.
In January, hours before closing arguments in the case, authorities had responded to a bomb threat at Engoron's Long Island home. Engoron's chambers have reported hundreds of harassing and threatening calls, emails, letters and packages.
Separately, on Christmas Day, Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith was the subject of a fake emergency call that reported a shooting at his home.
Smith, who is leading Trump's federal prosecutions in Washington, D.C., and Florida, has been the subject of numerous threats and intimidating messages since he was appointed and Trump began posting messages about him, prosecutors have said.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing Trump's Washington D.C. case, was targeted with a similar fake emergency call a few days later. Trump is charged in Washington with scheming to overturn his 2020 election loss and in Florida with hoarding classified documents after he left the White House.
On Monday, police in hazmat suits responded to Donald Trump Jr.'s Florida home after the former president's eldest son opened a letter that contained an unidentified white powder and a death threat. White powder was also found in a letter to Trump Jr. in 2018 and in mail sent to Eric Trump and Trump Tower in 2016.
Hoax attacks using white powder play on fears that date to 2001, when letters containing deadly anthrax were mailed to news organisations and the offices of two US senators. Those letters killed five people.
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Deep societal faultlines persist despite 75 years of independence: Justice Ujjal Bhuyan
Judge cites denial of home to Muslim girl, opposition to Dalit women cooking mid-day meals
Hyderabad, February 23, 2026: Supreme Court judge Justice Ujjal Bhuyan has said that despite repeated affirmations of constitutional morality by courts, deep societal faultlines rooted in caste and religious discrimination continue to shape everyday realities in India.
Speaking at a seminar on “Constitutional Morality and the Role of District Judiciary” organised by the Telangana Judges Association and the Telangana State Judicial Academy in Hyderabad, Justice Bhuyan reflected on the gap between constitutional ideals and social practices.
He cited a recent instance involving his daughter’s friend, a PhD scholar at a private university in Noida, who was denied accommodation in South Delhi after her surname revealed her Muslim identity. According to Justice Bhuyan, the landlady bluntly informed her that no accommodation was available once her religious background became known.
In another example from Odisha, he referred to resistance by some parents to the government’s mid-day meal programme because the food was prepared by Dalit women employed as cooks. He noted that some parents had objected aggressively and refused to allow their children to consume meals cooked by members of the Scheduled Caste community.
Describing these incidents as “the tip of the iceberg,” Justice Bhuyan said they reveal how far society remains from the benchmark of constitutional morality even 75 years into the Republic. He observed that while the Constitution lays down standards of equality and dignity, the morality practised within homes and communities often diverges sharply from those values.
He emphasised that constitutional morality requires governance through the rule of law rather than the rule of popular opinion. Referring to the evolution of the doctrine through judicial decisions, he cited Naz Foundation v Union of India, in which the Delhi High Court read down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, holding that popular morality cannot restrict fundamental rights under Article 21. Though the judgment was later overturned in Suresh Kumar Koushal v Naz Foundation, the Supreme Court ultimately restored and expanded the principle in Navtej Singh Johar v Union of India, affirming that constitutional morality must prevail over majoritarian views.
“In our constitutional scheme, it is the constitutionality of the issue before the court that is relevant, not the dominant or popular view,” he said.
Justice Bhuyan also addressed the functioning of the district judiciary, underlining that trial courts are the first point of contact for most litigants and form the foundation of the justice delivery system. He stressed that due importance must be given to the recording of evidence and adjudication of bail matters.
Highlighting the role of High Courts, he said their supervisory jurisdiction under Article 227 of the Constitution is intended as a shield to correct grave jurisdictional errors, not as a mechanism to substitute the discretion or factual appreciation of trial judges.
He recalled that several distinguished judges, including Justice H R Khanna, Justice A M Ahmadi, and Justice Fathima Beevi, began their careers in the district judiciary.
On representation within the judicial system, Justice Bhuyan noted that Telangana has made significant strides in gender inclusion. Out of a sanctioned strength of 655 judicial officers in the Telangana Judicial Service, 478 are currently serving, of whom 283 are women, exceeding 50 per cent representation. He added that members of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minority communities, and persons with disabilities are also represented in the state’s judiciary.
He observed that greater representation of women, marginalised communities, persons with disabilities, and sexual minorities would help make the judiciary more inclusive and reflective of India’s diversity. “The judiciary must represent all the colours of the rainbow and become a rainbow institution,” he said.
Justice Bhuyan also referred to the recent restoration by the Supreme Court of the requirement of a minimum three years of practice at the Bar for entry-level judicial posts. While acknowledging that the requirement ensures practical exposure, he cautioned that its impact on women aspirants, especially those from rural or small-town backgrounds facing social and financial constraints, would need to be carefully observed over time.
Concluding his address, he reiterated that the justice system must strive to bridge the gap between constitutional ideals and lived realities, ensuring that the rule of law remains paramount.
