Hammer in New York: Donald Trump sued for rape
Created: 11/25/2022 10:27 am
By: Daniel Dillman
A new law allows US columnist E. Jean Carroll to sue Donald Trump for alleged rape.
WASHINGTON, DC – 27 years after the alleged crime, Donald Trump must defend himself against allegations of rape.
US columnist E. Jean Carroll has sued the ex-president.
Trump allegedly molested her in a New York department store in 1995.
Carroll filed the complaint for personal injury and damage to reputation in a court in Manhattan, New York.
The fact that Carroll was able to file the lawsuit against Donald Trump at all is due to a new law in the US state of New York that went into effect on Thursday.
This allows victims of alleged rape to sue the perpetrator for damages - regardless of whether the actual act is already time-barred.
The alleged victims are granted a period of one year in the east coast state of the USA in which they can report past rapes.
Carroll was
the first to file a lawsuit under the new law , according to the
New York Times .
Donald Trump with wife Melania in Mar-a-Lago.
In New York, the ex-president has to answer for allegations of rape.
© Andrew Harnik/dpa
Donald Trump is being sued for rape by E. Jean Carroll
For Donald Trump and E. Jean Carroll, it is not the first dispute in court.
The now 78-year-old journalist sued Donald Trump for defamation in 2019.
In 2019, Carroll publicly accused then-President Trump of raping her in a dressing room at a luxury department store in New York in the 1990s.
Trump denied the allegations, saying the former Elle magazine columnist was "totally lying."
He added, "She's not my type."
After that statement, Carroll filed her defamation lawsuit against Trump.
But the New York billionaire repeatedly managed to delay the lawsuit.
Trump has at times demanded that the US Department of Justice cover his defense costs and legal work.
His argument: His controversial statements fell into his time as US President.
So Carroll is filing a lawsuit against the President, so the US government must also take on the defense.
Donald Trump: The biggest scandals and missteps
View photo gallery
Donald Trump: Lawyer responds to E. Jean Carroll's rape allegation
Donald Trump's attorney Alina Habba commented on Thursday about the rape lawsuit against her client.
Habba told the AFP news agency that she respects and admires people who speak up.
In this case, however, "unfortunately represents a misappropriation of the law, which creates a serious precedent and risks delegitimizing the credibility of the actual victims".
also read
Putin before the fall?
“There are intrigues around”
On Russian state TV: military expert attacks Baerbock
E. Jean Carroll had been silent for over 20 years before writing her story with Donald Trump in a book in 2019 - encouraged by the #MeToo movement against violence against women, which started in 2017.
She's far from the only woman making rape allegations against Donald Trump.
At least 25 women have accused the former president of sexual assault.
(
dil/dpa
)
