Donald Trump Sexual Assault Lawsuit Trial to Begin This Week

The trial of former President Donald Trump begins this week in New York City. The one-term president seeking re-election made headlines when he was indicted last month, but this trial is for a lawsuit unrelated to those charges. Jury selection began on Tuesday, which means the testimony will kick off before long.

Trump is going to trial for the alleged sexual assault of writer E. Jean Carroll. Carroll claims that Trump raped her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s, and is seeking unspecified damages. It’s no secret that she is also seeking symbolic justice for herself and the other women who have accused Trump of similar crimes. In a statement published by The Associated Press, Carroll said: “I’m filing this lawsuit not just for myself but for every woman in America who has been grabbed, groped, harrassed, sexually assaulted and has spoken up and still has been disgraced, shamed or fired.”

Trump’s history with women has been a contentious part of his political identity from the beginning – many pundits cracked jokes about his past in the beauty pageant industry before a recording of him bragging about groping models came out in 2016. Trump has more ex-wives than any other president in U.S. history and many credible allegations of adultery, not to mention the claims that he has harrassed or even assaulted some women in his past.

Over the last few years, political analysts have often been baffled by Trump’s continued success in spite of some of these stories, but that time may be coming to an end. Republican strategist Alex Conant told AP: “To the extent that the chaos around Trump is his biggest challenge, this reinforces that narrative. The number one thing I hear in focus groups of Republican voters is that they’re tired of the constant drama that comes with Trump.”

This trial is no the only “drama” plaguing the former president ahead of his bid for re-election. He was indicted last month on 34 counts of felony charges for fraud and finance violations. All the charges reportedly stemmed from secretive hush money payments made to cover up allegations of extramarital affairs which could have hurt his chances at being elected president.

Trump continues to claim that all the charges against him are invalid. In the case of Carroll’s lawsuit, he said it was “a complete con job.” He is reportedly not required to attend the trial and is considered unlikely to do so. Carroll is seeking an unspecified amount in damages.