The author E. Jean Carroll has been called to testify in her case against former president Donald Trump for defamation and assault, as the civil trial enters its second day in Manhattan.
He appears after the first witness, a former Bergdorf Goodman human resources manager named Cheryl Beall, who described a lingerie section on the sixth floor that was generally quiet and sparsely populated, particularly on Thursday nights.
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Beall also said that locker room doors were often unattended, with the doors open.
Carroll, who used to write an advice column for Elle magazine, has alleged that Trump sexually assaulted her in a Bergdorf Goodman store in 1995 or 1996, an allegation Trump denies. the civil trial comes from a lawsuit filed in November 2022, after New York passed a law that removed the statute of limitations for adults who claim to have been sexually assaulted for one year. An earlier lawsuit filed by Carroll in 2019 is still pending.
In opening remarks, Shawn Crowley, Carroll’s attorney, said Monday that Trump and Carroll had met at the department store, initially joking amicably as they walked through the store.
“Hey, you’re that advice lady,” Trump allegedly said, according to Crowley. She said Carroll responded, “Hey, you’re that real estate mogul.”
At some point, the two allegedly walked into a dressing room, and Crowley said Trump “suddenly” pushed Carroll against a dressing room wall, raped her and then tried to ruin her reputation after she broke the story in 2019.
