From left: E. Jean Carroll and Donald Trump.Photo: Getty Images (2)
Carroll does, however,want a DNA samplefrom the former president that she believes will support her sexual assault allegation against him.
“Today the court heard arguments on Donald J. Trump’s latest, meritless effort to delay E. Jean Carroll’s quest to show the world the truth,” Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, said in a statement sent to reporters on Tuesday. “We are grateful to Judge Kaplan for his respectful consideration of the issues and look forward to proving our case at trial.”
An attorney for Trump did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Carroll’s defamation suit against Trump, 75, stems from her claim that he sexually assaulted her in a New York City dressing room in the mid-1990s, which he adamantly denies.
He has likewise denied similar claims of sexual misconduct from more than a dozen women.
After Carroll, now 78, went public with her account of assault in 2019, Trump said inan interview: “No. 1: She’s not my type” and, further, he had “never met this person in my life.” (The two have been photographed together, though Trump said that was an incidental moment.)
Trump also tweeted that Carroll was “totally lying” about the rape, claiming she made up the allegation in order to help sell her memoir.
Carroll’s suit argued that Trump caused her “emotional pain and suffering” and damaged “her reputation, honor, and dignity” and thus her career.
Trump’s legal team attempted to countersue Carroll, arguing that the case violates laws protecting free speech. That argument appears to be facing a setback, however, as the federal judge presiding over the case called it “futile” on Tuesday.
“I question whether you have the right to do what you are seeking to do, because it seems to me it’s entirely inconsistent with the notion of futility,” the judge told Trump’s attorney, perReuters. “It may not be the way I resolve this matter.”
While Carroll’s attorneys are no longer seeking a deposition from Trump, they are reportedlyseeking a DNA sample, which they have said they would compare to a dress Carroll says she wore during the alleged rape.
The case is currently on hold while the parties await a verdict from an appeals court concerning whether the Justice Department could be substituted for Trump as the defendant.
AsCNN reports, the government cannot be sued for defamation, which would effectively end the lawsuit altogether.
source: people.com
