At the upcoming trial in April for the civil rape lawsuit brought against Trump by E. Jean Carroll, a federal judge has decided that the infamous Access Hollywood tape, in which former President Trump brags about groping women without their consent, may be presented as evidence. The lawsuit was brought by Carroll, who alleges that Trump s*xually assaulted her.
On Friday, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled that the testimony of two witnesses — Natasha Stoynoff and Jessica Leeds — who have each also claimed that Trump s*xually assaulted them may be introduced at trial. The judge also ruled that the tape of Trump’s interview with Access Hollywood may be introduced at trial.
Carroll claims in her lawsuit that her reputation was harmed in 2019 when Trump denied raping her and that Trump raped her in the dressing room of a Bergdorf Goodman in New York City in the middle of the 1990s. Carroll is suing Trump for allegedly raping her. Trump has been quoted as saying multiple times that Carroll’s assertions are “lies” and “hoaxes.” She has filed a defamation lawsuit against Trump.
Joseph Tacopina, who represents Donald Trump, declined to comment on the matter.
In his ruling, Kaplan stated that the Access Hollywood tape provides evidence that Trump has previously s*xually assaulted women, and that this satisfies the legal requirement to introduce the tape as evidence that Carroll’s legal team may use to establish that Trump has a propensity for s*xual assault. Carroll’s legal team may use this evidence to establish that Trump has a propensity for s*xual assault.
“In this case, a jury reasonably could find, even from the Access Hollywood tape alone, that Mr. Trump admitted in the Access Hollywood tape that he in fact has had contact with women’s genitalia in the past without their consent, or that he has attempted to do so. And that conclusion is supported by the other evidence discussed below,” Kaplan wrote.
During his conversation with “Access Hollywood” presenter Billy Bush, which was captured on video and later broadcast nationwide during the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump braggadociously discussed kissing and grabbing women. The ex-real estate developer and reality TV personality allegedly described having s*x with a married woman while using foul language. In addition, he admitted to trying to have s*x with her.
Trump said-
“I moved on her and I failed,”
“I’ll admit it … She was married … And I moved on her very heavily. In fact, I took her out furniture shopping. She wanted to get some furniture. I said, ‘I’ll show you where they have some nice furniture.”
“I’ve gotta use some tic tacs, just in case I start kissing her,” Trump recounted after seeing the actress Arianne Zucker on the set of the soap opera on which he was to appear. “You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait.”
“And when you’re a star they let you do it,” Trump continued. “You can do anything.”
Kaplan also will permit Stoynoff and Leeds to testify about their own claims of s*xual assault against Trump at trial. Leeds said that Trump assaulted her on a flight from Texas to New York in 1979, touching her and attempting to kiss her without her consent.
Kaplan wrote-
“Mr. Trump has claimed that Ms. Leeds is a liar and that no such event over occurred. And he will be entitled to make that argument to the jury,”
“But that is not now the issue. Even considered alone, Ms. Leeds’ account, if credited by the jury, reasonably could be regarded as describing unconsented-to s*xual contact by Mr. Trump and also as an attempt by Mr. Trump to bring at least his hands, and perhaps other parts of his body, into contact with Ms. Leeds’ genitalia, in each case in violation of federal law.”
He offered a similar analysis of claims made by Stoynoff, a former writer for People magazine, who said Trump s*xually assaulted her during a visit to Mar-a-Lago, kissing her and groping her without her consent
Kaplan ruled-.
“Moreover, the Access Hollywood tape and the testimony of Ms. Leeds are additional evidence that a jury would be entitled to consider in deciding whether to infer that the ultimate goal of Mr. Trump’s alleged actions with Ms. Stoynoff was to bring his hands or other parts of his anatomy into contact with Ms. Stoynoff’s most private parts.”
“To be sure, the Court does not now draw any such inference. And Mr. Trump has denied publicly any such occurrence ever happened. He of course will be entitled to do so before the jury. And the jury could credit Mr. Trump’s testimony in preference to Ms. Stoynoffs. But that is for another day”.
“The Court’s only function at this stage is to decide whether the evidence of record is sufficient for a jury reasonably to conclude that Mr. Trump at least attempted to have contact with Ms. Stoynoff that, if it had occurred, would have met the requirements of Rule 413(d). That standard has been satisfied.”
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