After Donald Trump was found liable for sexually abusing and defaming E. Jean Carroll , his legal team and his defenders lodged a frequent talking point.Despite Carroll’s claims that Trump had raped her, they noted, the jury stopped short of saying he committed that particular offense. He says that what the jury found Trump did was in fact rape, as commonly understood.The filing from Judge Lewis A. Kaplan came as Trump’s attorneys have sought a new trial and have argued that the jury’s $5 million verdict against Trump in the civil suit was excessive. But he said that the conduct the jury effectively found Trump liable for — forced digital penetration — meets a more common definition of rape. Trump was not accused of that, so the only alleged offense that would have qualified as “sexual abuse” was forced digital penetration. That’s an effort that will apparently continue as he faces a separate defamation lawsuit from Carroll, dealing with claims Trump made about her allegations while he was still president.But for now, Trump’s effort to push back has led to a rather remarkable clarification that severely undercuts his main talking point.

Source: Washington Post February 21, 2024 14:29 UTC