Breaking: Jury Announces Verdict in Trump Rape Trial
A Manhattan federal jury has reached a verdict in the controversial case involving former President Donald Trump and author and journalist Elizabeth Jean Carroll.
Carroll sued Trump after claiming that he raped her in the mid 1990s and then harmed her reputation in 2022 when he called her claims “a complete con job” and “hoax,” per Reuters.
The jury, consisting of nine men and women, found Trump liable for “sexually abusing and forcibly touching” Carroll and for defaming her, per CNBC.
They did not, however, find Trump liable of the rape claim.
According to CNN, for being found liable to the above accusations, the jury found that Trump should pay $2 million in damages for the sexual battery claim and another $3 million in damages for the defamation claim, bringing the total to $5 million.
Trump has long denied any wrongdoing in the matter.
It is worth noting that this was a civil case, so Trump faces no criminal proceedings.
Due to that, this verdict should provide little tangible obstacle to Trump’s 2024 election bid.
Additionally, Reuters noted that, due to a large number of Trump’s most ardent supporters feeling that Carroll’s claims are little more than a deliberate and politically motivated attack on the former president, today’s ruling is unlikely to have any effect on the 2024 general election, should Trump be the GOP nomination.
Trump is the current frontrunner to be the GOP nominee, although the man many consider to be his stiffest competition, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, has yet to announce.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
