From “She’s Not My Type” To Paying $5.6 Million In Damages: Why Is Donald Trump’s E. Jean Carroll Sexual Abuse Case Not The Biggest Story In America?

“She’s not my type”

Here, Trump sounded exactly like any immature 7th grader when accused of troubling a girl. Hmph.

But unfortunately, the reality of the situation ahead of us today is very much deeper than that.

Donald Trump said this statement when E. Jean Carroll accused him of sexually assaulting her in a department store in New York City in the 1990s. He asserted he had “no idea who this woman is” and called her allegations invalid. He claimed she invented the entire story for self-promotion.

Years later, a jury found him guilty of raping and defaming Carroll, another jury ordered him to pay $83.3 million for defaming her in another case, and this week the first jury verdict finally resulted in Carroll receiving $5.6 million after multiple appeals.

WOAH!

However, it looks like this story is not making headlines in social media. And we ask, why the hell not, you chronically online peoples?

Irrespective of whether you like or don’t like Trump, you must admit that when a president gets convicted for committing sexual abuse and receives a huge fine from the jury, this news should be the MOST discussed in America.

But, it’s..just..not.

Where it all began: a luxury department store

Carroll states that she met Donald Trump by chance in Bergdorf Goodman in New York City around 1995-1996.

After talking for a bit, Trump sarcastically asked for her help in choosing lingerie for another woman. Because, why not? Carroll describes it as a funny thing, “a funny New York moment.”

However, then she says that Donald Trump brought her to a dressing room, pressed her against the wall, and sexually assaulted her. Trump has always denied these claims.

Why did Carroll take around 20 long years to report this?

Critics immediately ask this question! Carroll never denied that she waited. Nevertheless, she had several times spoken about the reasons for this.

“I felt ashamed.”

Moreover, Carroll mentions that women are often held accountable for everything that happens to them and she feared that her profession would be ruined along with her reputation if she told the police.

She didn’t go to the police after the incident. She claims however that she told two of her friends right after the event. Those friends gave testimonies later.

Journalist Carol Martin told jurors that Carroll called her soon after the alleged attack. Martin recalled telling her:

“Forget it. He has 200 lawyers. He’ll bury you.”

Writer Lisa Birnbach testified that Carroll told her about the incident, and she suggested that Carroll report it to authorities. Carroll never even took the advice. Allegations were finally made public only in 2019. For many years, the case was kept quiet.

The things changed with the publication of Carol’s book excerpts in New York magazine.

Trump denied the allegations immediately.

Among other things, he said, “She is not my type,” “I do not know this woman,” and “She’s totally lying,” even saying that Carroll wanted to get publicity for her book.

Ironically, one of those statements would later become one of the most talked-about moments of the trial.

The courtroom scene no one could miss

When he was deposed on tape, Trump says that Carroll was not “his type.”

Then he was shown a picture. When asked, Trump confused E. Jean Carroll with the name of his ex-wife Marla Maples.

The whole thing was oh-so-iconic. The defense he had been using for years didn’t sound credible any longer.

How did Carroll sue after almost 30 years?

Because New York state in 2022 brought in the Adult Survivors Act. This gave the chance to adult victims of sexual assault to file civil lawsuits even though their cases were previously time-barred.

Without this law, Carroll would probably not have been able to file her claim.

The trial that people misunderstand

One of the biggest misunderstandings concerning this case is that Trump was “convicted.”

He was not. This is not a criminal case. No criminal charges were brought up and no jail time awaited him. Really, it was a civil lawsuit that required the jury to find out what was more probable: what had happened or what had not.

What did the trial hear that was actual evidence?

The jury heard a number of pieces of testimony and several supporting pieces of evidence contrary to claims of “no evidence”.

Carroll testified for multiple days herself. Carroll’s two friends testified that she told them about her experience shortly after the alleged incident. Two more women, Jessica Leeds and Natasha Stoynoff, testified that years apart Trump sexually abused them.

The judge allowed for their testimony to establish a possible pattern of behavior. The jury watched the famous Access Hollywood recording where Trump states:

“I just start kissing them.”

and

“Grab ’em by the p*ssy.”

Trump claims during his deposition that “historically, that’s true with stars.”

What ruling did the jury deliver?

In May 2023, the jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation and awarded Carroll $5 million in damages. Then, through the interest and appeals process, that amount reached around $5.6 million, which Carroll got.

There is, however, a legal nuance that sparks heated discussions online. The jury did not find Trump culpable of rape under the New York legal standard at the time. This, however, does not mean that they believed nothing has happened.

Later, Judge Lewis Kaplan addressed the confusion directly.

He wrote:

“The jury’s finding does not mean that Ms. Carroll failed to prove that Mr. Trump raped her.”

He went even further.

“Indeed… the jury found that Mr. Trump in fact did exactly that.”

Kaplan explained that while the jury did not find rape under New York’s technical statutory definition, Carroll’s allegation was “substantially true” in the ordinary understanding of the word. It’s one of the most misunderstood aspects of the entire case.