District Judge Lewis Kaplan has said it multiple times: Donald Trump raped E. Jean Carroll in 1996.
Kaplan wrote it in May 2023, when he presided over one of the trials against Trump.
And he reminded jurors of the rape this week, during the latest proceedings in the multi-layered, winding rape and defamation cases brought against Trump by Carroll.
Last spring, author and journalist Carroll sued Trump, testifying that he had raped her decades ago and had defamed her since by denying the accusations.
In New York, someone can only be convicted of rape if they can prove vaginal penetration by a penis.
Even though Carroll’s case has taken place in the national spotlight, it exists within the confines of civil law.
Several states don’t have any “rape” charge at all, but opt for language like “criminal sexual assault” or “sexual battery.” »
