In a civil trial on Wednesday, E. Jean Carroll, a former Elle magazine advice columnist, accused former US president Donald Trump of sexually assaulting and defaming her by lying about it nearly 30 years ago.
Carroll is seeking unspecified damages from Trump, who denied her rape claim in an October post on his Truth Social media platform, stating that he had not known her, that she was not his “type,” and that she made up the claim to sell her memoir.
She is also suing under New York’s Adult Survivors Act. Carroll testified in Manhattan federal court that she had met Trump years before the alleged rape, finding him “very personable” and a “man about town.” The alleged encounter took place in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in late 1995 or early 1996.
Carroll said that Trump recognised her and asked her to try on a piece of lingerie, prompting her to joke that he should try it on. However, she alleges that Trump then raped her until she was able to flee.
