Posted by Tuesday’s historic ruling saw a jury find Donald Trump responsible for s*xually abusing advice columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996, awarding her $5 million in a judgment that carries implications for his White House aspirations. The jury didn’t actually decide on Carroll’s rape claim but found Trump liable for a lesser degree of s*xual assault.
The verdict adds to Trump’s legal challenges and offers a vindicating moment for Carroll, who endured years of ridicule and dismissal for her allegations.
As the resounding verdict echoed through the halls of the federal courtroom in NYC, Carroll reportedly nodded and found solace in the embrace of her supporters as tears of joy intertwined with her radiant smile. The jury, in addition to holding Trump responsible for the act of s*xual abuse, deemed him liable for defaming Carroll after she bravely went public with her allegations.
Trump was absent when the verdict was read, but he lashed out with a statement, claiming again that he does not know Carroll and referred to the verdict as “a disgrace.” He also referred to the verdict as “a continuation of the greatest witch hunt of all time.” And then promised to appeal.
In the aftermath, Trump’s lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, reached out to Carroll, offering a handshake before sharing an embrace with her lawyer, Roberta Kaplan. Outside the courthouse, Tacopina branded the jury’s decision as both “strange” and “perplexing.” He then stated, “Part of me was obviously very happy that Donald Trump was not branded a rapist.” Tacopina also defended Trump’s absence from the trial, saying he would have entered “a circus atmosphere, and having him be here would be more of a circus.”
He continued, “What more can you say other than ‘I didn’t do it.’ And he said that on the road.” In her written statement released after she left the courthouse, Carroll said she sued Trump to “clear my name and get my life back. 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.”
Carroll’s lawyer, Kaplan also expressed her client’s case would serve as a reminder that no one, not even the president of the United States, can evade the reach of the law.
The consequences of the verdict for Trump’s third presidential bid, however, remain uncertain. Carroll is among the diverse group of women who have accused Trump of s*xual assault. In 2019, she fearlessly unveiled her harrowing account, asserting the Republican candidate had subjected her to rape within the confines of a Manhattan department store’s dressing room.
Trump, then aged 76, vehemently denied any involvement, claiming no recollection of encountering Carroll or having any knowledge of her.
Resorting to character attacks, Trump at the time disparaged Carroll as a “nut job” and dismissed her story as a “fraudulent and false story” concocted to bolster sales of her memoir. Seeking compensation, Carroll, now 79, pursued unspecified damages and demanded retractions of Trump’s defamatory denials. She gave multiple days of candid and emotional testimony, supported by the accounts of two trusted friends who attested to her alleged assault.
The jurors also had the opportunity to hear testimonies from other courageous women, including Jessica Leeds, a former stockbroker who recounted her ordeal of Trump forcibly groping her against her will aboard an airplane in the 1970s, and Natasha Stoynoff, a writer who detailed how Trump forcefully kissed her during a 2005 interview. Meanwhile, the verdict comes as Trump is facing a swirl of legal risks, including a case related to payments made to a p*rn actor.
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