"Rapist" tRUMP
2023-05-09 21:41:43 UTC
"Rapist Trump" has a nice ring to it. He should use it in his campaign!
A jury found Donald Trump liable Tuesday for sexually abusing advice
columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996, awarding her US$5 million in a judgment
that could haunt the former president as he campaigns to regain the White
House.
The verdict was announced in a federal courtroom in New York City on the
first day of jury deliberations. Jurors rejected Carroll's claims that she
was raped, but found Trump liable for sexually abusing her.
Hours earlier, U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan read instructions on
the law to the nine-person jury before the panel began discussing
Carroll's allegations of battery and defamation shortly before noon.
RELATED STORIES
Closing arguments start for columnist's claims against Trump
Key moments from the video of Trump's deposition in E. Jean Carroll
trial released to the public
Trump accuser says many in her generation didn't report rape
Trump calls rape claim 'ridiculous' in video deposition
Writer tells jury in lawsuit trial: 'Donald Trump raped me'
Trump, who did not attend the trial, has insisted he never sexually
assaulted Carroll or even knew her.
Kaplan told jurors that the first question on the verdict form was to
decide whether they think there is more than a 50% chance that Trump raped
Carroll inside a store dressing room. If they answered yes, they would
then decide whether compensatory and punitive damages should be awarded.
If they answered no on the rape question, they could then decide if Trump
subjected her to lesser forms of assault involving sexual contact without
her consent or forcible touching to degrade her or gratify his sexual
desire. If they answered yes on either of those questions, they will
decide if damages are appropriate.
On defamation claims stemming from a statement Trump made on social media
last October, Kaplan said jurors needed to be guided by a higher legal
standard -- clear and convincing evidence.
He said they would have to agree it was "highly probable" that Trump's
statement was false and was made maliciously with deliberate intent to
injure or out of hatred or ill will with reckless disregard for Carroll's
rights.
Meanwhile, Trump posted a new message on social media, complaining that he
is now awaiting the jury's decision "on a False Accusation." He said he is
"not allowed to speak or defend myself, even as hard nosed reporters
scream questions about this case at me."
Trump said he will not speak until after the trial, "but will appeal the
Unconstitutional silencing of me ... no matter the outcome!"
Trump never attended the trial, which is in its third week, and rejected
an invitation to testify, which the judge extended through the weekend
even after Trump's attorney, Joe Tacopina, said Thursday that his client
would not testify.
Tacopina told the jury in closing arguments Monday that Carroll's account
is too far fetched to be believed. He said she made it up to fuel sales of
a 2019 memoir in which she first publicly revealed her claims and to
disparage Trump for political reasons.
Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan, cited excerpts from Trump's October
deposition and his notorious comments on a 2005 "Access Hollywood" video
in which he said celebrities can grab women between the legs without
asking.
She urged jurors to believe her client.
"He didn't even bother to show up here in person," Kaplan said. She said
much of what he said in his deposition and in public statements "actually
supports our side of the case."
"In a very real sense, Donald Trump is a witness against himself," she
said. "He knows what he did. He knows that he sexually assaulted E. Jean
Carroll."
Carroll, 79, testified that she had a chance encounter with Trump at the
Bergdorf Goodman store across the street from Trump Tower. She said it was
a lighthearted interaction in which they teased each other about trying on
a piece of lingerie before Trump became violent inside a dressing room.
A jury found Donald Trump liable Tuesday for sexually abusing advice
columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996, awarding her US$5 million in a judgment
that could haunt the former president as he campaigns to regain the White
House.
The verdict was announced in a federal courtroom in New York City on the
first day of jury deliberations. Jurors rejected Carroll's claims that she
was raped, but found Trump liable for sexually abusing her.
Hours earlier, U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan read instructions on
the law to the nine-person jury before the panel began discussing
Carroll's allegations of battery and defamation shortly before noon.
RELATED STORIES
Closing arguments start for columnist's claims against Trump
Key moments from the video of Trump's deposition in E. Jean Carroll
trial released to the public
Trump accuser says many in her generation didn't report rape
Trump calls rape claim 'ridiculous' in video deposition
Writer tells jury in lawsuit trial: 'Donald Trump raped me'
Trump, who did not attend the trial, has insisted he never sexually
assaulted Carroll or even knew her.
Kaplan told jurors that the first question on the verdict form was to
decide whether they think there is more than a 50% chance that Trump raped
Carroll inside a store dressing room. If they answered yes, they would
then decide whether compensatory and punitive damages should be awarded.
If they answered no on the rape question, they could then decide if Trump
subjected her to lesser forms of assault involving sexual contact without
her consent or forcible touching to degrade her or gratify his sexual
desire. If they answered yes on either of those questions, they will
decide if damages are appropriate.
On defamation claims stemming from a statement Trump made on social media
last October, Kaplan said jurors needed to be guided by a higher legal
standard -- clear and convincing evidence.
He said they would have to agree it was "highly probable" that Trump's
statement was false and was made maliciously with deliberate intent to
injure or out of hatred or ill will with reckless disregard for Carroll's
rights.
Meanwhile, Trump posted a new message on social media, complaining that he
is now awaiting the jury's decision "on a False Accusation." He said he is
"not allowed to speak or defend myself, even as hard nosed reporters
scream questions about this case at me."
Trump said he will not speak until after the trial, "but will appeal the
Unconstitutional silencing of me ... no matter the outcome!"
Trump never attended the trial, which is in its third week, and rejected
an invitation to testify, which the judge extended through the weekend
even after Trump's attorney, Joe Tacopina, said Thursday that his client
would not testify.
Tacopina told the jury in closing arguments Monday that Carroll's account
is too far fetched to be believed. He said she made it up to fuel sales of
a 2019 memoir in which she first publicly revealed her claims and to
disparage Trump for political reasons.
Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan, cited excerpts from Trump's October
deposition and his notorious comments on a 2005 "Access Hollywood" video
in which he said celebrities can grab women between the legs without
asking.
She urged jurors to believe her client.
"He didn't even bother to show up here in person," Kaplan said. She said
much of what he said in his deposition and in public statements "actually
supports our side of the case."
"In a very real sense, Donald Trump is a witness against himself," she
said. "He knows what he did. He knows that he sexually assaulted E. Jean
Carroll."
Carroll, 79, testified that she had a chance encounter with Trump at the
Bergdorf Goodman store across the street from Trump Tower. She said it was
a lighthearted interaction in which they teased each other about trying on
a piece of lingerie before Trump became violent inside a dressing room.