Former President Donald Trump walked out of closing arguments in a defamation case in Manhattan federal court on Friday. The case was brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, who is seeking millions of dollars in damages for defamation. Trump’s lawyer, Alina Habba, was threatened with jail time by U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan for continuing to talk after being told to stop. Trump appeared agitated throughout the proceedings, shaking his head vigorously during closing arguments. The walkout occurred shortly after Roberta Kaplan, the lawyer for E. Jean Carroll, stated that Trump had tried to normalize abnormal conduct.
The defamation case against Trump comes after he left the courtroom the previous day in frustration at not being given the opportunity to refute Carroll’s sexual abuse accusations. Carroll, a longtime advice columnist, was awarded $5 million in a separate trial last year. The current trial is to determine whether she is entitled to additional damages. Trump managed to bypass the judge’s restrictions on what he could say during his testimony, which lasted only 3 minutes. The jury was instructed to disregard his remarks.
Carroll’s lawyers are seeking over $10 million in compensatory and punitive damages. Trump’s attorney argued against damages, claiming that Carroll’s association with Trump had given her the fame she desired and that any death threats she received could not be attributed to Trump’s statements. Carroll testified that her career was ruined by Trump’s remarks and that she experienced significant emotional distress. Trump testified that he stood by his previous denials of Carroll’s accusations.
