On Wednesday, a federal judge ruled against Donald J. Trump in a defamation case brought by E. Jean Carroll. Her original claim was that the the golf club magnate raped her. But then Trump attacked her character, and the longtime columnist filed for “defamation of character.” The ex-president will not be able to squirm out of the deposition this time. Instead, Trump will have to sit and be questioned under the penalty of perjury.
The former Elle magazine columnist claimed that Donald Trump raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman luxury department store’s changing room. The ex-president claimed that Carroll’s accusation was false, because “she’s not my type,” NBC News reported:
“I’ll say it with great respect: Number one, she’s not my type. Number two, it never happened. It never happened, OK?”
Federal Judge Lewis Kaplan denied Trump’s request to delay his deposition from October 19 to a later date and said a federal appeals court could decide the outcome of the lawsuit either way. However, that would not be a reason to pause “the depositions and document collection,” CNN reported.
Thus far, the previous president’s attorneys have been using “legal tactics” quite familiar to their client. The lawyers planned on delaying the case and keeping Trump out of depositions.
Judge Kaplan did not fall for Trump’s tricks. Instead, he wrote, according to The Associated Press (AP):
‘[I]t was time to move forward, especially given the “advanced age” of Carroll, 78, and Trump, 76, and perhaps other witnesses.
‘The defendant should not be permitted to run the clock out on plaintiff’s attempt to gain a remedy for what allegedly was a serious wrong.’
Attorney Alina Habba represents Trump in this case and released a statement that said:
‘We look forward to establishing on the record that this case is, and always has been, entirely without merit.’
Roberta Kaplan represents Carroll and said her client was happy with the ruling. Now she is ready to file “the new claims next ” and “moving forward to trial with all dispatch.”
Trump has only one option at this point. He can file an emergency appeal with Supreme Court (SCOTUS) Justice Clarence Thomas. The appeal would have to go through Thomas, because he is responsible for the former president’s geographic location (Florida). Other justices are responsible for other geographic locations.
Thomas should take the matter to the full SCOTUS, and they would decide whether to take Trump’s appeal. The Washington D.C. federal courts could also take the case, given that was where the previous president was located when the defamation case was filed.
Carroll’s case pivots on the question of whether Trump raped the writer. His attorneys filed a previous motion regarding Trump’s request to deny the action against him, substitute the U.S. government for the previous POTUS’ name, and “stay the action” against him. First of all, the former president was not “an employee of the government. Second, even if he were an employee, this action fell beyond the scope of his job.
The denial of Trump’s request to “skip the deposition” can be found here in the cloud. The original case can also be reached via the cloud.
Featured image is a screenshot via YouTube.
Christie writes Gloria Christie Reports & Three White Lions Substack newsletters and a Three White Lions podcast available on Apple, Spotify, etc. She is a political journalist for the liberal online newspaper The Bipartisan Report. Written in her own unique style with a twist of humor. Christie’s Mueller Report Adventures In Bite-Sizes a real-life compelling spy mystery (in progress). Find her here on Facebook. Or at Three White Lions her book on Amazon Kindle Vella and the Gloria Christie Three White Lions podcast on Apple, Spotify, etc.
