In a civil case, a jury has determined that former President Donald Trump engaged in sexual abuse against a magazine columnist at a New York department store during the 1990s. However, the jury did not find him liable for the alleged rape of E Jean Carroll in the store’s dressing room. Additionally, the jury found Mr. Trump responsible for defamation due to his public dismissal of the writer’s accusations as a “hoax and a lie.”
This marks the first time that Mr. Trump has been legally held accountable for a sexual assault. As a result, the Manhattan jury has ordered him to pay approximately $5 million (£4 million) in damages to Ms. Carroll. The jury, consisting of six men and three women, reached their decision in less than three hours of deliberation on Tuesday. Following the verdict, Ms. Carroll expressed in a written statement, “Today, the world finally knows the truth. This victory is not just for me but for every woman who has suffered because she was not believed.” Mr. Trump’s lawyer has announced his intention to appeal the decision.
As the trial took place in civil court rather than criminal court, former President Donald Trump will not be obligated to register as a sex offender. Despite denying the allegations made by E Jean Carroll, Mr. Trump did not attend the two-week civil trial held in Manhattan federal court. Ms. Carroll, aged 79, was accompanied by her lawyers as the verdict was announced in court, and she smiled upon receiving damages awarded by the jury.
After the trial concluded, Mr. Trump’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, shook hands with Ms. Carroll and offered his congratulations and good wishes. In a statement, Roberta Kaplan, one of the plaintiff’s lawyers, expressed that the verdict was a victory not only for Ms. Carroll but for democracy itself and for all survivors.
In response to the verdict, Mr. Trump, aged 76, posted on his social media platform Truth Social, using all capital letters to state that he had no knowledge of who Ms. Carroll was. He referred to the verdict as a disgrace and continued to characterize it as a continuation of the greatest witch hunt in history.
It is important to note that the standard of proof in civil cases is lower than in criminal cases, requiring jurors to find it more likely than not that Mr. Trump assaulted Ms. Carroll. Although the jury found Mr. Trump liable for sexual battery and defamation, they did not hold him liable for rape. Convincing the jury of non-consensual sexual intercourse would have been necessary to establish liability for rape.
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