E. Jean Carroll won a partial victory in her defamation lawsuit against former President Trump on Wednesday, with the judge ruling a trial is needed only to determine how much Trump must pay the writer in damages.

In a significant blow for Trump, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled Trump defamed Carroll by making false statements with actual malice in June 2019 when she came forward with accusations that Trump sexually assaulted her years earlier.

Kaplan ruled that a jury’s May verdict in Carroll’s other lawsuit against Trump, which found him liable for the assault itself and defaming Carroll last fall, is controlling in the case.

  • meco03211@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I have to laugh at how the only defense from his supporters I’ve seen is the pure whataboutism of “but Tara Reade accused Biden of sexual assault!”

    They don’t deny trump sexually abused someone. They don’t indicate their opinion was negatively affected at all. Just essentially as long as the other side is sexually abusing people, it’s OK for our side to do it too.

    • Elderos@lemmings.world
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      1 year ago

      They will just say whatever. They really don’t care what sort of person he is. What they care about is that he’s against "America, and that’s what those neoconfederates care about. He could kill kittens and drown old ladies in his backyard and they would humour you with some whataboutism. They really don’t care. They want a new shot at establishing the Confederacy.

    • mycatiskai@lemmy.one
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      1 year ago

      Every time he opens his mouth he loses even more money. He won’t have any “election” money left if he has to keep paying lawyers and court rulings.

      He’ll be itching for another arrest so he can sell another short with two mugshots on it.

  • blazera@kbin.social
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    1 year ago

    “Liable for assault” is a new one for me. Sexual assault only a civil crime now?