Trial of rape allegations: Trump did not appear

2023-04-25 16:04:16

A spokesman confirmed to the German Press Agency after the officially scheduled start of the proceedings on Tuesday that Trump was not in the courthouse in New York. The Civil process began without him.

The US author Jean Carroll accuses the Republican of raping her in a New York department store in the mid-1990s. Trump denies the allegation. The allegations are time-barred. It is estimated that the process could take a week. First, the twelve jurors are to be selected for the trial in Manhattan.

It was already questionable whether the 76-year-old Trump would appear at the trial. His attorney Joseph Tacopina had said the former president would like to come to New York, but wanted to spare the city the huge logistical hassle that would be associated with a trip to the big city and through Manhattan.

Carroll, now 79, is demanding compensation from Trump. She had made the rape allegation public in 2019 in a book excerpt. At the time, Trump responded by saying, among other things, that Carroll was not his type. He also accused her of only wanting to sell her book. The writer then sued Trump – initially for defamation because he had portrayed her as a liar. A new New York law recently made it possible to add the allegation of physical harm.

The mood in the US regarding the legal prosecution of Trump is heated. He is being investigated for a number of possible crimes. Trump himself dismisses all cases as politically motivated actions. He wants to win the Republican nomination for the 2024 presidential election.

In early April, Trump became the first former US president to be criminally indicted. The Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg accused him of trying to increase his chances in the 2016 presidential election by paying hush money to two women, thereby violating election laws.