Trump Has Predatory Behavior

What we know

The record documenting Trump's predatory conduct toward women is unusually extensive for a major political figure, spanning civil jury verdicts, criminal convictions, recorded admissions, and sworn testimony from more than two dozen women. In May 2023 a federal jury in New York found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation against writer E. Jean Carroll, awarding $5 million. Carroll alleged Trump sexually assaulted her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the mid-1990s. The jury found sexual abuse (though not rape under the narrow NY statutory definition) and defamation with actual malice via a 2022 Truth Social post. In January 2024 a second jury awarded $83.3 million in additional defamation damages - $7.3M emotional, $11M reputation, $65M punitive. The Second Circuit upheld the original $5M verdict on December 30, 2024. The combined $88.3M is the largest sexual-misconduct civil judgment against a major American political figure.

A central piece of trial evidence was the Access Hollywood tape, recorded September 2005 and published by The Washington Post on October 7, 2016. Trump told Billy Bush: 'I just start kissing them... I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the pussy.' During his 2022 Carroll deposition Trump confirmed: 'Historically, that's true with stars.'

Four 1997 Miss Teen USA contestants, including Mariah Billado (Miss Vermont Teen USA), told BuzzFeed News that Trump walked into the dressing room while contestants as young as 15 were undressing. In 2002 Trump told New York Magazine about Jeffrey Epstein: 'I've known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy... he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.' ABC News maintains a running tally of Trump's named sexual-misconduct accusers - more than 26. On May 31, 2024 Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal the $130,000 hush-money payment to Stormy Daniels, arranged through Michael Cohen in October 2016.

Common claims

• A jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse of E. Jean Carroll.Supported - May 2023 federal jury, $5M; upheld on appeal December 2024
• Trump bragged on tape about grabbing women without consent.Supported - Access Hollywood tape, 2005, confirmed at 2022 deposition
• Trump entered dressing rooms with underage contestants.Supported - Miss Teen USA 1997 multiple-witness accounts
• Trump and Epstein were close associates.Supported - 15-year friendship, Trump's 2002 remarks to NY Magazine
• All accusers are politically motivated and unreliable.False - 26+ named accusers across decades, before and after Trump entered politics

Evidence hierarchy

All sources

• E. Jean Carroll v. Donald J. Trump - WikipediaWikipedia · 2024
• Carroll v. Trump, No. 23-793 (2d Cir. 2024)Justia Law / Second Circuit Court of Appeals · 2024
• Donald Trump Access Hollywood Tape - WikipediaWikipedia · 2016
• Trump, in deposition, doubles down on Access Hollywood remarksABC News · 2023
• Jeffrey Epstein Was a 'Terrific Guy,' Donald Trump Once Said. Now He's 'Not a Fan.'The New York Times · 2019
• The allegations about Donald Trump and Miss Teen USA contestantsPolitiFact · 2016
• List of Trump's accusers and their allegations of sexual misconductABC News · 2020
• A timeline of key events in the Trump hush money trialPBS NewsHour / AP · 2024
• Read Our Complaints: Stormy Daniels Hush MoneyCommon Cause · 2024
• Donald Trump sexual misconduct allegations - WikipediaWikipedia · 2016

Related terms