Donald Trump was found liable for defaming writer E. Jean Carroll when he denied having raped her in a dressing room in the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan in the mid-1990s. Carroll accused Trump of committing the sexual assault during an encounter when Trump asked her to help him shop. Trump did not take the stand in the civil trial nor did his defense team call witnesses and put on a traditional defense. The jury called the incident sexual abuse rather than rape.
The amount of compensation Trump will be required to pay as a result of the verdict has  been determined to be nearly $5 million. .
The jury received the case on the morning of May 9 and announced that a verdict had been reached in the early afternoon. The jury consisted of six men and three women.
Trump had said a few days ago that he would come to New York to testify but did not appear. Carroll’s side had called other women who testified that Trump also had assaulted them. Video excerpts of a deposition given by Trump were played during the trial.
In a social media post, Trump called the verdict disgraceful and a continuation of the greatest witch-hunt of all-time.
