A Manhattan judge has denied former President Donald J. Trump's request for a one-month delay in the trial of a lawsuit against him by E. Jean Carroll, a magazine writer who has accused him of raping her in the mid-1990s. Lawyers for Mr. Trump had sought to postpone the trial, scheduled to begin on April 25, due to what they called a “deluge of prejudicial media coverage” concerning his recent indictment in Manhattan.
Judge Lewis Kaplan said there was no justification for postponing the trial and noted that news coverage was largely “invited or provoked by Mr.Trump’s own actions.” The judge added that it would be difficult to ignore the possibility that Trump had attempted to delay this long-awaited civil defamation and rape case which began over three years ago when E Jean Carroll sued him after he claimed she was not his "type."
Kaplan also stated that jury selection process would address any concerns about publicity surrounding Mr.Trump’s indictment and other matters while ensuring a fair jury pool is selected.
The ruling serves as an important reminder of how much legal jeopardy Trump faces on multiple fronts; including his recent indictment and arraignment in connection with Stormy Daniels' hush money case.
In addition, Kaplan rejected another bid from last week where Trump argued information related to who is paying for Carroll's legal defense was not properly disclosed.
E.Jean Carroll claims that former President Donald J.Trump raped her at Bergdorf Goodman dressing room back in 1990s and then made defamatory statements about her allegations. With Judge Kaplan's order on Monday, both attempts from Mr.Trump seeking adjournment have been dismissed which means trial will start as previously scheduled on April 25th.
Donald J.Trump continues denying rape ever happened while facing an unrelated criminal charge involving hush-money payments during 2016 election with 34 felony counts.