A federal judge has reportedly rejected Donald Trump’s plea for a mistrial in the defamation lawsuit filed by columnist E. Jean Carroll. The judge dismissed the former president’s arguments as lacking “merit” and being “entirely pointless.”
What Happened: Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed Trump’s motions during the civil trial, stating that a written order would follow. The judge expressed that granting a mistrial would be “entirely pointless” as it would only lead to a restart of the case, reported CNN on Wednesday.
Trump sought a mistrial after Carroll admitted to deleting some death threats she received following her public allegations against Trump in June 2019. Carroll testified that she only considered suing Trump after meeting lawyer George Conway at a party in mid-July 2019. Judge Kaplan stated that only then did Carroll’s obligation to preserve electronic information commence.
Kaplan also turned down Trump’s request for sanctions and criticized Trump’s attorneys for initially making the mistrial motion in front of the jury during Carroll’s cross-examination, despite being aware of the message deletions for over a year.
The jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million in damages. The judge has yet to issue a ruling to finalize the verdict.
See Also: Chris Christie Is Not Ruling Out Independent Run To Challenge Donald Trump
Why It Matters: This lawsuit has been a significant event in the public sphere. Carroll was awarded $83.3 million in damages in a defamation lawsuit against Trump, as reported by Benzinga. Following the verdict, Trump began interviewing new lawyers for his appeal, as per another Benzinga report.
Carroll, on the other hand, has expressed her readiness to take further legal action against Trump if necessary, as stated in an interview with MSNBC's Rachel Maddow, reported by Benzinga.
The defamation lawsuit came after a jury concluded that Trump had sexually assaulted Carroll in the mid-1990s, as reported by Benzinga.
Photo via Shutterstock.
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