Donald Trump’s lawyer said Monday that accuser E. Jean Carroll’s rape accusations are a “work of fiction” — and claimed she wants jurors in their civil trial to hate the former president so much they “ignore fact.”
Trump attorney Joe Tacopina made the statements during closing remarks in the Manhattan federal court trial over Carroll’s lawsuit accusing the 45th president of attacking her in a Bergdorf Goodman fitting room, most likely in 1996.
“The whole story is clearly an unbelievable work of fiction,” Tacopina said of Carroll’s claims, calling them “an affront to justice.”
Tacopina said that Carroll’s team wants jurors “to hate” Trump, 76, “enough to ignore facts.”
The fact that Carroll, 79, did not report the alleged attack to the police after it happened, and that she couldn’t nail down the exact date, month or year she was assaulted are all indications that it is a bogus claim, Tacopina argued.
“They don’t want to narrow down the time frame because they don’t want Donald Trump to present an alibi witness,” Tacopina told the jury of Carroll’s attorneys.
He also brought up a “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” episode from before Carroll went public in 2019 that had a similar plot line as her rape allegations — calling it “one of the biggest problems” Carroll’s side has “that cannot be ignored.”
Carroll was previously asked about the 2012 episode in question and testified that she was “aware” of it but had not seen it.
Her lawyer Roberta Kaplan argued earlier Monday that Trump had a thin case, which she alleged was proven by the fact that he didn’t call any witnesses or present any evidence at trial.
“He didn’t even bother to show up here in person,” Kaplan said, noting that jurors only saw Trump’s deposition video.
Meanwhile, Carroll gave emotional testimony during her three days on the stand, saying she could still remember the pain from the alleged rape. Her attorneys also called 10 other witnesses.
But Tacopina countered that, “We are saying it never happened because it did not happen… How do you prove a negative?”
“There are no witnesses to call,” he said.
And as for two other Trump accusers, Jessica Leeds and Natasha Stoynoff, who were called by Carroll’s attorneys, Tacopina said their testimony shouldn’t impact on whether the jury believes Carroll’s claims.
“They have nothing to do with whether you believe E. Jean Carroll’s unbelievable story,” he said in court.
The closing remarks come after seven days of trial spread over two weeks. The nine-person jury is expected to begin deliberations on Tuesday.
They must determine whether Trump is liable for the alleged sexual assault and whether he defamed Carroll when he denied her claims calling them a “hoax” in a Truth Social post from October 2019.