I apologize for any confusion. Here is the revised response without the additional description:
Former President Donald Trump appeared in a New York courtroom on Thursday to defend himself against a lawsuit brought by advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who accused him of sexual assault. The trial had been temporarily suspended earlier in the week due to a juror falling ill. However, it resumed on Thursday with two jurors being socially distanced from the rest in the jury box.
During the trial, Carroll’s lawyers called Roberta Myers as a witness, who described Carroll as a truthteller during her tenure as the editor-in-chief of Elle magazine. The defense then proceeded to show jurors video clips of Trump dismissing Carroll’s allegations as a made-up fabricated story and incorrectly identifying her as his ex-wife, Marla Maples, during a deposition.
If everything goes as planned, Trump could take the witness stand before the lunch break. While Carroll, 80, testified the previous year that she was assaulted by Trump in 1996, Trump has consistently denied knowing her and claims she fabricated the assault to sell a memoir. He did not testify or attend last year’s trial, a decision he now regrets.
Judge Lewis A. Kaplan has ruled that the conclusions reached by the jury in the previous trial mean that the current jury only needs to determine the amount of money, if any, that Trump owes Carroll for his defamatory statements. Trump will not be allowed to testify about subjects that conflict with the prior verdict, such as claiming Carroll fabricated her assault or was motivated by a book deal or political reasons.
Throughout the trial, Trump has expressed his disdain for the case, often making comments and gestures, such as shaking his head, to signal his discontent to the jury. However, during one instance, Trump’s complaints about a witch hunt and con job were heard by jurors, prompting Kaplan to threaten to eject him from the courtroom if it happened again. Trump referred to Kaplan as a nasty judge during a subsequent news conference and continued to dismiss Carroll’s allegations as a made-up, fabricated story on his social media platform.
Both the defense and prosecuting attorneys have presented their arguments, with Carroll’s lawyers arguing that hitting Trump financially is the only way to prevent him from defaming their client. Trump’s attorneys have countered by attempting to show that Carroll has gained fame and financial rewards through her conflict with Trump, outweighing any negative impact from social media harassment and death threats she has received.
In addition to the ongoing trial, Trump also faces four criminal cases as the presidential primary season ramps up. He has used his court appearances and campaign events to argue that he is being unfairly targeted by Democrats who fear his potential re-election.
As the trial continues, all eyes will be on whether or not Trump takes the witness stand and how the jury will evaluate the evidence presented before reaching a verdict.
