New York, New York - The judge overseeing Donald Trump's hush money trial fined the former president again for violating a gag order, and threatened jail time if he continues.

On Monday morning, as the trial entered its third week, Judge Juan Merchan opened the day by ruling the presidential candidate be fined $1,000 for violating the order, holding him in contempt for a second time.

The judge also said if Trump's conduct continues, he could be forced to impart a harsher judgement.

"As much as I do not want to impose a jail sanction... I want you to understand I will," Merchan said, per the AFP.

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"At the end of the day I have a job to do and part of that job is to maintain the dignity of the justice system," he added.

Trump is facing 34 felony charges in the case for allegedly falsifying business records in an effort to hide payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels to cover up an affair.

Judge Merchan originally issued a partial gag order in March, which aimed to prevent Trump from continuing to publicly attack people involved in the case.

The order was expanded earlier this month after Trump launched several attacks against Merchan's daughter, who is not directly involved in the trial in any way.

Last week, the judge hit Trump with a similar judgement, ordering him to pay a fine of $1,000 for nine different violations, totaling $9,000.

After Merchan's ruling, the trial proceeded, with Jeffrey S. McConney, the former corporate controller at the Trump Organization, taking the stand for testimony.