Judge Approves Depositions for Trump and George Stephanopoulos in ABC Lawsuit

December 14, 2024 TruthUSA

Donald Trump is taking legal action against ABC and news host George Stephanopoulos, claiming defamation regarding remarks related to the E. Jean Carroll case.

A magistrate judge in Florida has mandated that President-elect Donald Trump and ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos appear for depositions this month as part of a continuing lawsuit.

Earlier this year, Trump initiated a lawsuit against Stephanopoulos and ABC News, contending that the “This Week” host defamed him by declaring during an interview with Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) that a jury had found Trump liable for rape.

A brief order issued by Magistrate Judge Lisette Reid specifies that the depositions for Trump and Stephanopoulos will occur for no more than four hours in the week of Dec. 16.

The interview with ABC occurred following two civil lawsuits in New York from author E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of raping her in the 1990s. Although the jury did not uphold her claim of rape, they found Trump liable for a type of sexual abuse. Trump has denied all allegations of wrongdoing.

Trump’s defamation suit against Stephanopoulos revolves around an interview in March where Stephanopoulos questioned Mace about her support for Trump and made comments regarding the challenges faced by victims of rape.

During the interview, Stephanopoulos stated, “Donald Trump has been found liable for rape by a jury,” and further queried Mace, “Why are you supporting someone who’s been found liable for rape?”

Just over a week after that interview aired on March 10, Trump filed a lawsuit against Stephanopoulos in the Southern District of Florida. His March 18 complaint highlighted that the jury’s verdict indicated that Carroll did not meet the burden of proof to show that Trump raped her.

ABC sought to dismiss the case, asserting that the statements made during the interview were largely accurate and protected under the fair report privilege, which safeguards journalists from libel claims when reporting fairly and accurately about official events or documents.

The network’s filing referenced a July 2023 opinion by Judge Lewis Kaplan of the Southern District of New York, who observed that New York law interprets rape more narrowly than its conventional usage.

“The determination that Ms. Carroll did not demonstrate that she was ‘raped’ under the New York Penal Law does not equate to her failing to prove that Mr. Trump ‘raped’ her in the common understanding of the term,” Kaplan noted.

In July, Judge Cecilia Altonaga denied the motion to dismiss. She indicated that “a reasonable viewer — particularly one aware that the Plaintiff had been accused of rape under New York Penal Law — could have been misled by Stephanopoulos’s remarks, which lacked the jury’s original conclusions and only briefly acknowledged the interpretation provided by Judge Kaplan.”

Judge Altonaga stated that “[a]ny remaining uncertainties regarding the reasonableness of Stephanopoulos’s remarks should not be resolved in a motion to dismiss.”

She also mentioned the potential for a jury to determine that there was adequate context in the comments made by the ABC anchor.

“A jury may, upon review of the segment, find sufficient context,” she remarked. “A jury may also determine that the Plaintiff has not established other aspects of his claim. … Nonetheless, a reasonable jury could conclude that Plaintiff suffered defamation, making dismissal inappropriate.”

Jack Phillips contributed to this report.

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