JAKARTA - A writer on Wednesday detailed in civil court how Donald Trump allegedly raped her nearly 30 years ago, to determine whether the former President of the United States raped her and then lied about it.
"I'm here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote about it, he lied and said it didn't happen," E. Jean Carroll told jurors in Manhattan federal court, reported by Reuters, April 27.
"He lied and destroyed my reputation, and I'm here to try to get my life back," she continued.
Carroll, 79, a former Elle magazine advice columnist, is seeking unrestricted damages from Trump, 76, who is vying in the Republican Party to run in the 2024 US Presidential election.
Her lawsuit concerns an alleged encounter in a Bergdorf Goodman Department Store locker room in late 1995 or early 1996, where she says Trump raped her before she could escape.
Carroll said Trump defamed her by calling her rape claims a hoax, a lie, and "finished a con job" on his Truth Social media platform, said she was not "his type" and had fabricated claims to sell her memoirs.
She also sued under New York's Adult Survivor Act, which allows adults to sue old abusers after a set time limit has expired.
Trump was not present and was not required to attend the trial, which begins on Tuesday. He has a New Hampshire campaign event scheduled for Thursday. Both sides have indicated Trump is unlikely to testify.
Trump defended his disdain for Carroll's case in Truth Social on Wednesday, calling her lawyers a "political operator" and the rape claims "fabricated fraud", adding: "This is a fraudulent & false story — the Witch Hunt!"
Meanwhile, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan warned that Trump could face more legal problems if he continued to discuss the case.
Trump posted his latest comments on Truth Social about an hour before Wednesday's testimony began.
She questioned how anyone could believe him – "so famous, to put it mildly!" - could have raped Carroll.
"He didn't scream?" wrote Trump. "No witnesses? No one saw this?"
The post led Kaplan to tell Trump's legal team, outside of the jury's presence, that Trump appeared to be "attempting to publicly speak his quote-unquote" and to jurors about matters of which he had "no business being discussed."
Kaplan also said Trump could "damage new sources of accountability" if he continued. Trump's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, said he would ask Trump to stop.
Inspired by the #MeToo movement, Carroll came to the fore in 2019, and denied Trump's repeated statements that he didn't like his politics.
"I'm not solving political problems at all," Carroll said. "I'm settling personal issues because he's called me a liar over and over again, and it has completely destroyed my reputation."
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She said Trump's attack caused Elle to fire her, cost her 8 million readers and led others to believe she was a liar. Carroll broke down in tears when asked if he regretted ending his silence.
"I've regretted this about 100 times," he says, "but being able to finally have my day in court is finally everything to me."
Trump's lawyers are expected to question Carroll on Thursday, including her inability to remember when the alleged rape took place.
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