Donald Trump found liable for sexual abuse, defamation of former journalist E. Jean Carroll

Donald Trump has been found liable for the battery and defamation of E. Jean Carroll in a civil lawsuit but a New York jury found he did not rape her.

Donald Trump has been ordered to pay E. Jean Carroll $5m for battery, defamation. Picture: AFP.

A New York jury has found that Donald Trump sexually abused an American former magazine columnist in a department store in 1996.

The nine jurors decided following a two week long civil trial that the former president did not rape E. Jean Carroll, but did find him liable for defaming her.

Mr Trump was ordered to pay a total of $5 million to Ms Carroll, an advice columnist.

Mr Trump slammed the verdict as a “disgrace” after the jury found it more likely than not that he sexually abused Ms Carroll in a dressing room of Bergdorf Goodman. Jurors also found that Mr Trump defamed Ms Carroll in comments he made denying her allegations, which she first made publicly in 2019.

The verdict is a rebuke to Mr Trump as he seeks the 2024 Republican presidential nomination while being dogged by a host of legal troubles. He is separately facing New York criminal charges connected to his payment of hush money to a porn star before the 2016 election, as well as other criminal investigations, related to the pressuring of Georgia officials after the 2020 election, his actions on January 6, 2021, and his handling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence.

He is also facing civil fraud allegations from the New York attorney general and another civil lawsuit from M. Carroll, who formerly was a longtime Elle magazine columnist and at one time a writer for “Saturday Night Live.”

Mr. Trump has denied wrongdoing in all of these matters. He chose not to testify in the Carroll trial — or attend any of the proceedings in person — but in a videotaped deposition under oath he accused Ms. Carroll of making up her allegations for publicity and political reasons, calling it “the most ridiculous, disgusting story.” His lawyers argued Ms. Carroll’s allegations contained inconsistencies, and that she had not behaved like a rape victim at the time of the alleged incident or in the years since.

Ms Carroll’s allegations first became public in a 2019 New York Magazine article that was an excerpt of a book she published the same year, “What Do We Need Men For?”

While jurors were only deciding on Ms Carroll’s allegations, the trial became a broader examination of Mr Trump’s treatment of women, resurfacing derogatory comments he made in the past. Two women also testified at the trial in support of Ms Carroll, saying they were sexually assaulted by him in a similar manner years ago. Mr. Trump has previously denied their allegations.

Jurors also saw a well-known video that became public in 2016 in which Mr Trump told an “Access Hollywood” host how women let stars “grab them by the pussy.”

Ms Carroll told the civil trial that the alleged assault had left her feeling “ashamed” and unable to have romantic relationships.

She said it took her more than 20 years to go public because she was “frightened” of Mr Trump.

Her lawyers called to the witness stand two other women who testified that Mr Trump sexually assaulted them decades ago.

Former businesswoman Jessica Leeds told the Manhattan federal court that Mr Trump groped her in the business class section of a flight in the United States in the 1970s.

Journalist Natasha Stoynoff said Mr Trump kissed her without her consent during an interview at his Mar-a-Lago estate in 2005.

Trump did not testify during the proceedings, nor did his defence team call any witnesses.

A video of a sworn deposition he gave in October was played to the jury. In it, Trump called Mr Carroll “a liar” and “really sick person.” His lawyers argued that Ms Carroll invented the allegation “for money, for political reasons, and for status.” She filed her lawsuit under a New York law that gave victims of sexual assault a one-year window to sue their alleged abusers decades after attacks may have occurred.

Dow Jones, AFP