The defamation hearing begins this Tuesday

A day after his landslide victory in Iowa, Donald Trump is expected to have a defamation hearing in New York this Tuesday. Last year another trial for sexual assault was filed by the winning author.

The former Republican president, who is seeking a return to the White House in November’s election, announced last Thursday that he intended to go to court to defend himself against the charges. E. Jean Carroll, 80, former columnist for Elle magazine, who is suing for $10 million for damages to her professional reputation.

“I’ve never seen that woman in my life (…) I have no idea who she is,” Donald Trump repeated last week about the author, after he accused her of being a “liar. ” and said “fool”. to pay. On top of that, in another trial in May last year, more than $2 million for a sexual assault in 1996 and nearly $3 million for another defamation case in October 2022. Trump has already appealed the ruling.

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The trial, which begins with jury selection this Tuesday, focuses on statements made by the 77-year-old Republican in June 2019, After the journalist mentioned the rape allegations in a magazine article.

At that time the then president gave assurance Carol was “not his type” and made up the whole story to “sell his new book”.

The trial was delayed due to procedural disputes.

In a sign of the tension surrounding the new trial, The judge has directed that the identities of the jury members be kept confidential.

In an effort to prevent the hearing from turning into a political rally, investigating judge Louis Kaplan He clarified that “the only thing at stake in the trial is the harm caused to Ms. Carroll by the statements” she called “defamatory.” “false” and “malicious.”

Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, wrote to the judge last Friday, warning him of the risk that the Republican’s presence would create “chaos” at the hearing.

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According to a document in the court file, Trump requested the trial be postponed so he could attend the funeral of his mother-in-law Amalija Naves in Florida on Thursday.

But the judge denied the request, reminding him that on Wednesday night he planned to attend a rally in New Hampshire on the second date of the primaries, in his bid to return to the White House from which Democrat Joe Biden nearly ousted him earlier. four years.

with tuesday, The Republican magnate has at least six civil and criminal court dates pending. But so far they don’t seem to have put a dent in their political career.

This Monday, Trump easily defeated his main opponents in his party, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis, in the first meeting of the primaries. Held in the frozen state of Iowa while awaiting the New Hampshire appointment on Wednesday.

With his usual skill, the Republican has turned every indictment and every court appearance into a political platform, multiplying insults and accusations against prosecutors and judges whom he accused of a “witch hunt” to prevent him from winning in November.

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“They’re not coming for me, they’re coming for you (…) I’m just in the middle of the road,” he writes in capital letters to his followers on his social networks.

In the midst of the primary campaign, the trial could once again raise questions about Trump’s treatment of women, as he has been accused of sexual assault on several occasions, although he has never been criminally convicted.

AFP