Donald Trump calls rape claim ‘ridiculous’ in video statement

Donald Trump called a writer’s claims that she raped him in a Manhattan department store “the most ridiculous, disgusting story,” testifying in a statement shown to a court on Wednesday that the allegations were “made up” and the assault never happened. Was.

Attorneys for accuser E. Jean Carroll played excerpts from a nearly 30-minute statement from the former president, including a forceful rebuttal of the longtime advice columnist’s allegations that he had sex in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the mid-1990s. had attacked them.

Trump said, “If it had happened, it would have been reported within minutes.” He reasoned that shoppers and employees at the “very busy store” would have heard the commotion and alerted the authorities.

“This is the most ridiculous, disgusting story. It just got made up,” Trump said in a video statement taken in October.

Several jury members leaned forward, watching emotionlessly as video played on separate monitors in front of their seats.

In other developments on Wednesday, Trump’s lawyers said they would not call any witnesses, and the judge said final arguments were likely on Monday before the jury begins deliberations on Tuesday.

Trump has not attended the trial and will not testify, giving more importance to his statement. Asked about the case during a visit to Ireland on Wednesday, Trump told reporters, “I hear we’re doing very well in New York.”

Jurors in federal court in Manhattan are expected to hear more of Trump’s statement on Thursday, after three more witnesses are called to the stand by Carroll’s lawyers.

Carroll is seeking unspecified monetary damages and Trump’s retraction of statements she alleges were defamatory.

Trump has denied knowing Carroll, once saying “she’s not my type” and arguing that her claims are attempts to politically tarnish his reputation and deprive him of the White House.

His refusal to testify capped an emotional day in court that saw more allegations of inappropriate treatment of women and the playing of the infamous “Access Hollywood” video in which Trump bragged about grabbing women’s genitals without permission.

Natasha Stoynoff, a former People magazine writer, testified through tears that Trump visited his Mar-a-Lago estate just after Christmas in 2005 for an article about his first wedding anniversary with his third wife. While showing around, forcibly kissed her. Melania.

Prior to trial, Trump’s attorneys were unsuccessful in trying to prevent jurors from viewing the “Access Hollywood” video and hearing from Stoynoff, who said she told only a few people about the alleged incident at the time but was unable to view the tape. Later decided to go public. and Trump’s subsequent rebuttals in the 2016 debate.

“The terrible part for me was that I was worried that, because I didn’t say anything at the time, other women were hurt by him, so I had to repent,” Stoynoff said.

Stoynoff began to cry when asked about her trip to interview Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, reaching for tissues to dab her eyes and pausing between questions. Stoynoff testified that Trump whisked away staff and a photography crew, wishing to show her a “really great room” at the estate, before surrounding her and kissing her.

Stoynoff, a Canadian who adopted an old family name for her writing career, recalled closing the door behind her and said Trump soon “put his hands on my shoulders, pushed me against the wall and started kissing me.” Gave.” The encounter lasted several minutes, said Stoynoff, whose real name is Nancy Stevens.

“I tried to push him away,” Stoynoff said, describing how Trump again approached her and how he again tried to push her away. She was “so shocked and terrified” that she was unable to speak and was crying, she said.

Stoynoff told jurors, “I’m at a loss for a word.”

Stoynoff said Trump showed no signs of stopping, but suddenly came into the room after a butler told Melania she was ready for the next phase of the interview.

As they walked to a patio area, Stoynoff said, Trump told her “You know we’re going to have an affair,” and reminded her that his second wife, Marla Maples, had once bragged in a tabloid. Mari had sex with Trump. Best he ever was.

Trump has denied that he ever tried to kiss Stoynoff. Trump’s attorney, Joseph Tacopina, suggested she had no relevance to Carroll’s case and ended his cross-examination after asking her a single question: Was she involved in any lawsuits against Trump? He is not.

Stoynoff’s testimony came a day after another woman, former stockbroker Jessica Leeds, testified that Trump grabbed her breasts and tried to reach up her skirt while they were on an airline flight in the late 1970s. were sitting next to each other.

Carroll kept her claims against Trump a secret for 17 years, telling just two close friends before going public with the allegations in a 2019 memoir. In the book, she described how a sometimes flirtatious chance encounter with Trump at a department store in 1996 ended in violence when Trump locked her in a dressing room after they tried on each other a piece of lingerie. challenged to do.

Trump’s lawyers attacked Carroll’s credibility through exhaustive cross-examination, questioning why she did not scream for help during the alleged assault and why she never went to the police.

A psychologist testifying on Carroll’s behalf said Wednesday that it is common for rape victims to remain silent and blame themselves.