A US judge on Friday rejected as “absurd” former president Donald Trump's effort to dismiss writer E Jean Carroll's lawsuit accusing him of defamation and battery after he denied raping her in the mid-1990s.
US District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan said there was no merit to Mr Trump's argument that Ms Carroll's battery claim under New York's Adult Survivors Act must be dismissed because the law denied him due process under the state's constitution.
The judge also said state law did not require Ms Carroll, a former Elle magazine columnist, to prove that she suffered an economic loss from Mr Trump's comments, as the former president had argued.
Alina Habba, a lawyer for Mr Trump, said they were “disappointed with the court's decision” and that the team planned an immediate appeal.
Roberta Kaplan, Ms Carroll's lawyer, said they were “pleased though not surprised” at the decision.
The lawsuit is one of two in which Ms Carroll accuses Mr Trump of defamation after he denied raping her in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in late 1995 or early 1996.
Ms Carroll first sued Mr Trump after he denied the accusation in June 2019, telling a reporter at the White House that he did not know Ms Carroll, that “she's not my type” and that she concocted the claim to sell her new memoir.
The second lawsuit arose from an October 2022 social media post in which Mr Trump called the rape claim a “hoax”, a “lie”, a “con job” and a “complete scam”, saying “this can only happen to 'Trump'!”
That lawsuit included the battery claim under the Adult Survivors Act, which, starting last November 24, gave adults a one-year window to sue their alleged attackers even if statutes of limitations had expired.
Mr Kaplan said Mr Trump was “demonstrably incorrect” to claim that the law was unconstitutional because lawmakers did not sufficiently explain why it was needed.
The judge said lawmakers had passed the law to help sexual abuse victims who might have suppressed memories of their attacks, or, like Ms Carroll were deterred from suing out of fear.
“To suggest that the ASA violates the state due process clause because the legislature supposedly did not describe that injustice to the defendant's entire satisfaction in a particular paragraph of a particular type of legislative document — itself a dubious premise — is absurd,” Mr Kaplan wrote.
He and Mr Carroll are awaiting a decision from a Washington appeals court on whether, under local law, Mr Trump should be immune from Ms Carroll's first lawsuit over his June 2019 comments.
That lawsuit is likely to be dismissed if the court decides that Mr Trump spoke within his role as president, and continue if he spoke in a personal capacity, as Ms Carroll argued.
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Essentials
The flights
Etihad (etihad.ae) and flydubai (flydubai.com) fly direct to Baku three times a week from Dh1,250 return, including taxes.
The stay
A seven-night “Fundamental Detox” programme at the Chenot Palace (chenotpalace.com/en) costs from €3,000 (Dh13,197) per person, including taxes, accommodation, 3 medical consultations, 2 nutritional consultations, a detox diet, a body composition analysis, a bio-energetic check-up, four Chenot bio-energetic treatments, six Chenot energetic massages, six hydro-aromatherapy treatments, six phyto-mud treatments, six hydro-jet treatments and access to the gym, indoor pool, sauna and steam room. Additional tests and treatments cost extra.
Rashid & Rajab
Director: Mohammed Saeed Harib
Stars: Shadi Alfons, Marwan Abdullah, Doaa Mostafa Ragab
Two stars out of five
Drishyam 2
Directed by: Jeethu Joseph
Starring: Mohanlal, Meena, Ansiba, Murali Gopy
Rating: 4 stars
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
Director: Romany Saad
Starring: Mirfat Amin, Boumi Fouad and Tariq Al Ibyari
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
