Donald Trump’s attorneys search to chop intercourse abuse jury award from $5M to beneath $1M

NEW YORK — The $5 million awarded to a columnist by a jury that concluded she was sexually abused within the Nineties by Donald Trump in a New York luxurious division retailer must be diminished to lower than $1 million, the previous president’s attorneys informed a decide Thursday, saying the award was grossly extreme and based mostly on “pure speculation.”

The attorneys famous in a written submission {that a} Manhattan federal courtroom jury final month rejected a rape declare made by the author, E. Jean Carroll, concluding as an alternative that she had been sexually abused in spring 1996 within the retailer’s dressing room.

“Such abuse could have included groping of Plaintiff’s breasts through clothing, or similar conduct, which is a far cry from rape,” the attorneys wrote.

They mentioned the $2 million granted by the jury on a sexual abuse declare was “grossly excessive” and one other $2.7 million issued for compensatory defamation damages was “based upon pure speculation.”

The award ought to include not more than $400,000 for intercourse abuse, not more than $100,000 for defamation and $368,000 or much less for the price of a marketing campaign to restore Carroll‘s repute, the attorneys wrote.

If a decide doesn’t grant the urged discount within the award, then he ought to allow a brand new trial on damages, they mentioned.

Carroll, 79, testified on the trial that she had a flirtatious and pleasant probability encounter with Trump at a midtown Manhattan Bergdorf Goodman retailer till he adopted her right into a dressing room and have become violent.

Trump, 76, didn’t attend the trial, however prolonged excerpts of a videotaped deposition from final October had been performed for jurors. In them, he denied ever encountering Carroll on the retailer or realizing her. He mentioned he believed she made the claims in opposition to him partly to advertise a 2019 memoir during which she first publicly made allegations in opposition to him.

Roberta Kaplan, Carroll‘s legal professional, mentioned in an emailed assertion that the arguments by Trump‘s attorneys had been frivolous.

She mentioned the unanimous jury had concluded that Trump sexually assaulted Carroll after which defamed her “by lying about her with hatred, ill-will, or spite.”

“This time, Trump will not be able to escape the consequences of his actions,” Kaplan mentioned.

Trump should still face a second defamation trial ensuing from one other lawsuit Carroll filed in opposition to him. That case has been delayed with appeals because the U.S. Justice Department sought to substitute the United States because the defendant instead of Trump. Government attorneys say Trump can’t be held answerable for the feedback he made as president.