Carroll and Kaplan on New York Radio

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One of the biggest stories this spring has to be the civil suit against former president Trump for battery and defamation, arguably the most global exposure yet for the #MeToo movement. The plaintiffs' lawyer is the famous LGBT advocate Roberta Kaplan, who argued the pivotal case US v Windsor, then resigned from Times Up over complaints she was disparaging a woman who accused Cuomo. Trump's lawyer is also known for taking high profile cases, and they are both pulling out all stops for the jury. Ed Sheeran was also in court on a copyright issue over "mashing up" Marvine Gaye, but right now, #MeToo fans are probably more interested in what's going on upstairs.
Second week of trial is ending. In case you haven't had time to keep up, here's a brief recap of the highlights of the trial so far:(aside from the testimony of the parties, which has been very adroitly discussed in various publications.) The plaintiff has called several witnesses including friends and relatives who remember her talking about the battery, a psychiatrist specializing in trauma processing, and two.other women who were also unexpectedly assaulted by Trump, one at his Mar al Lago estate and the other on a plane when she was moved from business to first class. The jury also heard the famous pXXX grabber tape, which the judge allowed in as relevant evidence of character/habit. Trump instead had two people on his list, himself, and he decided to go play golf on another continent, and a psychiatrist presumably to counter Lebowitz, who has decided not to testify due to health complications. Thus, Trump is presenting no witnesses. The judge also denied Tacopina's motion for a mistrial earlier this week. Stay tuned.

It's old news now that Trump decided not to come back to the US to "confront" Carroll as he had toyed with doing, so closing arguments were today, May 8. While Kaplan said that Carroll is "absolutely Trump's type" because he mistook Carroll for Maples in a photograph, Tacopina is calling the claims baseless. The jury will deliberate now.
As the jury deliberates, it might be edifying to consider that the central issue in this trial is somewhat akin to the story of St Giles, Charlemagne and the unspeakable sin, which has been researched by scholars like Suzanne Hafner,see jstor for example. The point is, how do we as a society deal with a crime like rape if committed by someone we chose to lead us? Do we simply say it didn't happen? it's an interesting question, and one that we may each answer, even if we are not the jury or the judge.

Well, in this case V is for verdict and we all know what it is.
Trump is somehow claiming he was denied the right to defend himself, even though the judge gave him until Sunday at five to come back from the links and testify.

In the wake of the verdict and the subsequent town hall, Kaplan and Carroll are considering another defamation lawsuit, and news outlets are speculating that his speech at the meeting would be entered into evidence against him. Several more staffers that worked for Trump have also mentioned harrassment claims, and lawyers in NY are bracing for a wave of lawsuits under the Adult Survivors of Sexual Abuse Act.

and just as we thought...E Jean Carroll says hundreds of people have asked her how to sue their abusers...looks like it might be a long, hot summer in the southern district of NY.

Kaplan has not yet announced a second suit, but the valanga is curious..how many people read the Sunday paper before 730 am?
What are some other highlights of the week while we wait for the class action against Trump...Apparently, @metoo isn't all about suing people: some sources are reporting that Shia Leboeuf, of Transformers, who was accused of assaulting his girlfriend, and had "hit the skids", signed on with Abel Ferrara to do a Padre Pio movie which will be out in a couple of weeks. Some sources are claiming he took the role to resurrect his lagging career, but actually became a believer while playing Pio in the movie and is now receiving the Eucharist every day.
Ferrara reportedly conceded he was counterintuitive to direct a movie on a saitn, to have admitted his early career was full of porn and violence, but "the friars have an optimistic take on things" and so he felt empowered to do the Pio film, which incidentally stars Daniel Defoe who played Pasolini, also known for controversial content and violence, in his earlier work. Oddest of all, LeBoeuf says he likes the Latin Mass. Movie will hit theaters the first weekend of June, and everyone can see Shia in a friar robe if they wish.

Neocities.