OAN Staff James Meyers
11:11 AM – Friday, September 6, 2024
Donald Trump and his lawyers appeared in a Manhattan federal court on Friday, looking to overturn a $5 million jury verdict finding him liable for sexually assaulting writer E. Jean Carroll.
However, Trump was found not guilty of rape, as the two are defined differently, according to the law.
Carroll has a history of accusing powerful men of rape, as she also previously accused Les Moonves, the former CEO of CBS, of raping her in 2019.
The 45th president’s motorcade was spotted pulling up outside the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Lower Manhattan as the hearing was underway.
Preparations started several days ago for 2024 GOP frontrunner, to safely be able to attend the arguments in person.
Trump was found liable in May 2023, of allegedly sexually assaulting the “Ask E. Jean” advice columnist in a Bergdorf Goodman fitting room in 1996, and then defaming her in an October 12th, 2022, Truth Social post, asserting that her lawsuit was a “hoax.”
Trump has been adamant that he never sexually assaulted Carroll. He did not attend the initial trial in 2023.
“Mr. Trump is here today,” Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, told the court during Friday’s hearing. “He was given every opportunity to take the stand and rebut all this evidence. He did not put on a single witness.”
Trump’s lawyers have argued that the jury’s verdict should be tossed since evidence was allowed at trial that should have been excluded, while other evidence was excluded that should have been permitted.
Trump attorney Will Scharf also stated that the case is invalid due to lack of evidence, no police report filed, and the fact that there were no witnesses.
Furthermore, they added that the former president couldn’t get a fair trial in New York.
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