Former U.S. President Donald Trump has been for the first time found liable for sexual abuse against magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll. After a civil trial that lasted two weeks and under three hours of deliberation, the jury found Mr. Trump not liable for rape but liable for sexual abuse and defamation. The jury ordered him to pay Ms. Carroll 5 million dollars in compensatory damages. During the trial, she testified that Donald Trump had sexually assaulted her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in Manhattan in either 1995 or 1996.
The trial started on April 25 and Trump was not present for the entire time. In a blog post on his Truth Social platform, Donald Trump referred to the decision as a disgrace and claimed that he had absolutely no idea who this woman was. In a statement, E. Jean Carroll said, the world finally knows the truth. This victory is not just for her, but for every woman who has suffered because she was not believed.
Trump’s spokesman, Steven Cheung, said that the former president would appeal. That means he will not have to pay the awarded damages so long as the verdict is being challenged in court.
WhatsApp us