Former President Donald Trump has requested a one-month delay in his upcoming rape trial scheduled for April 25, citing the negative mass media coverage surrounding his indictment and arrest in the Stormy Daniels hush money case. Lawyers representing Trump have asked a United States District Court judge to allow for a “cooling off” period so that potential jurors would not be tainted by recent events.
E. Jean Carroll, a former Elle magazine columnist, accused the former president of raping her in the mid-1990s and subsequently sued him for defamation after he denied the allegation. Team Trump now hopes that by postponing the civil trial to late May, they will find "a jury far more likely to be impartial than one recently inundated with prejudicial media coverage."
Joseph Tacopina, an attorney representing Trump, cited “the recent deluge of prejudicial media coverage” as grounds for requesting this delay. The high-profile nature of both cases has led to widespread news reports potentially affecting juror opinions.
Carroll alleges that she encountered Trump at Bergdorf Goodman department store in early 1996 when he sexually assaulted her inside a dressing room. A temporary state law enacted last year allows adult rape victims to sue their abusers even if attacks occurred decades ago.
Trump faces additional legal challenges as he pleaded not guilty on April 4th to 34 felony charges accusing him of falsifying business records to conceal $130,000 worth of reimbursement payments made by his former lawyer Michael Cohen who had paid off Daniels prior to the 2016 election.
As it stands now without approval from Judge Kaplan regarding any delays or adjustments related directly or indirectly with either case; Carroll's first lawsuit against Trump remains set on track towards its original trial date: April 25th.