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Donald Trump’s Rape Accuser E. Jean Carroll Files New Lawsuit Under Adult Survivors Act

Carroll is seeking an unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for pain and suffering, psychological harm, dignity loss, and reputation damage allegedly caused by Trump.

E. Jean Carroll, the writer who accused Donald Trump of raping her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s, brought a new lawsuit against the former president on Thursday—minutes after a new New York statute, the “Adult Survivors Act,” took effect to allow victims of sexual violence to sue over attacks that occurred decades ago. Carroll is seeking an unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for pain and suffering, psychological harm, dignity loss and reputation damage caused by Trump, the lawsuit said, according to the Associated Press.

When Carroll revealed the shocking rape claim in a 2019 book, Trump—who was president at the time—said her story couldn't be true because she was “not my type.” These remarks led Carroll to file a defamation lawsuit against him, but it's been tied up in appeals courts as judges decide whether his position of president shielded him from legal claims. But Carroll's latest lawsuit provides her the ability to challenge Trump over possible defamatory remarks and the alleged rape itself—something previously barred by New York law that stated rape victims could not file charges after too many years.