Judge Sets Steve Bannon Criminal Fraud Trial Over Border Wall

The charges relate to the ‘We Build the Wall’ fundraiser that went viral on social media years ago.

Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon arrives at a press conference outside the federal correctional institution in Danbury, Con., on July 1, 2024. Yuki Iwamura/AFP via Getty Images

A judge ruled that former Trump adviser and campaign manager Steve Bannon must face a New York criminal trial related to a private-backed initiative to fund former President Donald Trump’s U.S.–Mexico border wall.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice April Newbauer, who issued a ruling on the matter on Aug. 23, denied Bannon’s motion to dismiss the charges. Currently, Bannon is being held in a federal prison on contempt of Congress charges and is slated to be released in October.