Critical phase of Trump trial with jury deliberation

The defamation trial against donald trump initiated by the writer E. Jean Carroll, it began its critical phase with the deliberation of the jury, which will have to determine whether the former president of the United States acted “maliciously” and, in that case, how much he must pay the plaintiff.

The former president (2017-2021), who left the courtroom furious when the prosecution presented its arguments before returning when it was his lawyer’s turn to defend his cause, considers the trial a “Witch hunt” orchestrated by the “radical left” to prevent his return to the White House in the November elections.

Carroll, an 80-year-old writer and journalist, is demanding US$10 million from the Republican for damages to her reputation after statements made in 2019 by the then president, following the publication of a book and an article in which he claimed that the real estate magnate He had raped her in a department store in the 1990s.

“The man who sexually assaulted (Carroll) does what he wants, lies, defames“said one of the writer’s lawyers in the final arguments.

“He continues to use his enormous platform to hurt her (…) and can you imagine what his followers did? They have not stopped pursuing her,” she added. The question is how much money “will it take for me to stop doing it?”“, he pointed.

Trump appeared concerned as the jury left the courtroom to begin deliberations. “This is an important case, guys,” Judge Lewis Kaplan told them.

The jury must determine whether “Mr. Trump acted maliciously, out of hatred, ill will, or rancor, vindictively, or in reckless, or deliberate indifference to Ms. Carroll’s rights” and, if so, the amount he They think I should pay the writer.

Trump, who often calls her “tared” either “sick“, then said that the journalist “wasn’t his type” and that he had invented rape to “sell your new book”. “Destroyed my reputation“, the writer said in court.

In May of last year, another jury had found the Republican guilty of sexual assault and defamation, condemning him to pay $5 million to Carroll. The tycoon appealed the ruling.

“Like Monica Lewinsky”

Trump did not take long to rant on his Truth Social platform against the judge, the plaintiff and her lawyer.

After comparing the case with that of Monica Lewinsky, the intern who, between 1995 and 1996, had a sexual relationship with then-President Bill Clinton, he repeated that E. Jean Carroll, “who was in the doldrums and failing in life (. ..) has gained the money and fame he so desired.”

“A US president was accused of doing something he didn’t do for an UNKNOWN woman, TO HIM, who was seeking fame, fortune and publicity for her ridiculous book!“Trump said, angrily attacking the judicial system, which in his opinion is “chaos.”

Faced with insistence on taking the stand to defend himself, Trump was finally able to do so on Thursday, but the investigating judge limited his intervention to three questions to which he had to answer with a yes or no.

“He says something that I consider false”Trump stated before Kaplan cut him off.

“This is not America” the billionaire bellowed as he left the courtroom, visibly angry.

This is one of the multiple judicial fronts that await the former president in the midst of the electoral race this year.

There are 91 criminal accusations pending against him in various courts, most related to his attempts to remain in power after the elections four years ago won by Democrat Joe Biden, whose victory remains unrecognized.