Jury finds Donald Trump assaulted, defamed E. Jean Carroll

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Published

2023-05-09 14:18

2:18

May 9, 2023

p.m

Updated

2023-05-09 17:35:34.000000

America/New_York

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A jury found on Tuesday that Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed writer E. Jean Carroll, in a lawsuit related to a decades-old rape allegation involving the former president and current presidential candidate. presidency. He was awarded $5 million in damages.

The nine-member jury returned the verdict just hours after deliberations began in a civil trial that began in late April and lasted several weeks.

Carroll claimed in 2019 that Trump raped her in a dressing room during a chance encounter at a Bergdorf Goodman store in New York City in the late 1990s. She said Trump vilified her on social media when she denied the allegation.

The jury determined that Carroll did not prove her rape allegation but agreed that Trump was liable for sexual abuse and defamation.

Trump did not face prison time following the trial, but it marks one of the first times he will face consequences for any of the sexual misconduct claims women have made against him. . It comes as he is running for president again and is leading the Republican Party’s primary polls. Trump is expected to appear Wednesday at a televised forum hosted by CNN.

Trump also faces multiple separate criminal investigations.

Carroll’s lawyers had to convince jurors that a preponderance of the evidence supported his civil case, a standard for evidence that is lower than in a criminal case.

Shortly after the verdict was read, Trump told Fox News Digital that he plans to appeal.

This verdict is a shame, he said. This is a continuation of the greatest witch hunt in history.

While Trump declined to testify in person during the trial, the jury was shown clips of Trump’s pre-recorded jury deposition in which he denied assault.

It didn’t happen, the 76-year-old Trump said in the video. He also said that Carroll was not my type but also mistook him for his ex-wife, Marla Maples, in a photo from the 1980s. After correcting Trump, he said the picture was blurry.

Shortly before Tuesday’s deliberations began, Trump claimed on his social media platform Truth Social that he was not allowed to speak or defend himself in the case. But District Judge Lewis Kaplan, who is presiding over the trial, gave Trump an extended window until the weekend to testify.

Carrolls testimony over several days included a detailed account of the alleged rape and its effects on her life. Carroll told the jury that he had not had sex or a romantic partner since the alleged sexual assault.

I’m here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote this, he said it didn’t happen, the 79-year-old said. He lied and ruined my reputation, and Im here to try to get my life back.

Carroll left a Manhattan courtroom smiling before getting into a car.

Later, he released a statement, saying: “Now, the world finally knows the truth. This victory is not only for me but for every woman who has suffered because she was not believed.”

Carroll testified during the trial that he told two friends about the alleged rape shortly after it occurred; they testified to corroborate his account. Separately, two women also testified that Trump sexually assaulted Jessica Leeds and Natasha Stoynoff.

Trump’s lead trial attorney tried to frame Carroll as a liar and someone trying to make money off the allegation.

Although the battery and defamation charges are unrelated to Trump’s time in public office, the trial comes as the former president faces some scrutiny over his actions as president. He pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree related to alleged hush money paid to adult film actor Stormy Daniels. He also faces investigations related to alleged election interference in Georgia during the 2020 election and mishandling of classified documents.

Carroll was only able to file her lawsuit in November because of a new New York state law that extended a window for people to pursue civil claims involving allegations of sexual assault where the statute of limitations has expired.

On Tuesday, Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, who signed the bill into law, its importance.

I am proud to have signed the Adult Survivors Act so brave survivors like E. Jean Carroll will have their day in court, she tweeted. This law gives survivors the right to have their voices heard.

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