NEW YORK, USA – E. Jean Carroll, the former magazine columnist, took to the stand on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, giving a chilling account of her alleged sexual assault by Donald Trump, the former President, in a New York City department store in 1996.
Carroll’s testimony is key to her ongoing battery and defamation lawsuit against Trump.
“I’m here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote about it, he said it didn’t happen,” Carroll testified, her voice echoing in the silent courtroom. “He lied and shattered my reputation and I’m here to try to get my life back.”
The former columnist alleges that Trump raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room and later defamed her when she went public with the accusations. Trump has consistently and vehemently denied the allegations.
Throughout her testimony, Carroll recalled her initial delight at shopping with Trump, expecting it to be an amusing tale for her friends. She described Trump as friendly and very funny, not raising any cause for concern.
“I love to give advice and here was Donald Trump asking me for advice about buying a present,” Carroll said, remembering the day’s initial light-heartedness.
However, the atmosphere took a severe turn in the lingerie department.
Carroll recounted that Trump had suggested she try on a sheer gray bodysuit. Thinking it a joke, she told him he should try it on instead.
Following Trump’s gesture, she entered the dressing room, believing the moment could make for a humorous “Saturday Night Live” sketch.
Carroll then detailed the alleged assault, which left her traumatised and fearing retaliation if she went public. “My whole reason for being alive in that moment was to get out of that room,” she said, holding back tears.
Following the alleged incident, Carroll reached out to her friend Lisa Birnbach, thinking she could make light of the situation. However, Birnbach was clear: it wasn’t a laughing matter. Carroll was raped, Birnbach said, and she should report the assault to the police.
Despite this advice, Carroll chose to keep quiet about the incident for fear of being “buried” by Trump’s legal team. “I was frightened of Donald Trump. I thought he would retaliate and I was ashamed. I thought it was my fault,” she admitted.
While Carroll identifies as a Democrat and has criticized Trump’s presidency, she emphasized that her pursuit of the lawsuit was not politically motivated.
“I’m not settling a political score,” she said. “I’m settling a personal score because he called me a liar repeatedly, which has decimated my reputation. I’m a journalist – the one thing I have to have is the trust of the readers.”
The trial continues, with former Bergdorf Goodman Women’s Store Manager Cheryl Beall having also testified about the store’s layout and security practices at the time of the alleged assault.
