Judge In E. Jean Carroll Civil Rape And Defamation Trial Refuses Jury Instruction That Defendant Trump Is Excused From Attending Trial

Update to Federal Judge Denies Trump’s Request To Delay His Civil Rape And Defamation Trial.

Last week, the trial judge ordered the parties to notify the court if they would be attending the trial in person.

E. Jean Carroll quickly notified the court that she would be attending her trial (she has been waiting for this moment for years). E. Jean Carroll will attend civil rape trial against Trump starting next week in Manhattan: “In a court filing, Carroll’s lawyer Roberta Kaplan said she would be present throughout the trial starting April 25.”

Defendant Trump had to tell the court whether he planned to be there by Thursday. Defendant Trump submitted this bullshit excuse why he should not have to attend the trial. Trump says he shouldn’t attend E Jean Carroll rape trial as he doesn’t want to ‘burden’ New York:

Donald Trump has said he shouldn’t attend E Jean Carroll’s rape civil trial as he doesn’t want to “burden” New York City.

In a letter to Manhattan federal court Judge Lewis Kaplan on Wednesday, Mr Trump’s attorney Joe Tacopina said that the former president “wishes” to attend the civil trial beginning next week – but is concerned about the “logistical and financial burdens” of his attendance on “the courthouse and New York City”.

As a result, Mr Tacopina asked that jurors be instructed the following: “While no litigant is required to appear at a civil trial, the absence of the defendant in this matter, by design, avoids the logistical burdens that his presence, as the former president, would cause the courthouse and New York City. Accordingly, his presence is excused unless and until he is called by either party to testify.”

The letter leaves open the possibility the former president could still testify in person in the upcoming trial.

The trial judge appears to have had quite enough of Defendant Trump’s and his attorney’s antics in this case.

JUST IN: Judge presiding over next week's civil trial between Trump and E. Jean Carroll is not buying Trump's claim he wants to spare NYC the resources / arrangements of his presence.

Judge Kaplan says he's confident the Secret Service/city can handle it. https://t.co/ZpIY6uigr0 pic.twitter.com/iFEU8dB2kV

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) April 20, 2023

NBC News Reports, udge refuses to tell jury in Trump civil rape trial that former president is ‘excused’:

A federal judge in the civil rape trial of former President Donald Trump said that his request for special jury instructions in the case is “premature” in a filing Thursday.

The response from U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan, who is presiding over the trial stemming from writer E. Jean Carroll’s lawsuit, came a day after Trump’s lawyer sent the judge a letter indicating the former president might take the witness stand in the trial, but it would be too difficult for him to attend the entire trial for logistical reasons tied to his former office.

In his letter to Kaplan on Wednesday, the lawyer, Joe Tacopina, requested the judge to instruct jurors: “While no litigant is required to appear at a civil trial, the absence of the defendant in this matter, by design, avoids the logistical burdens that his presence, as the former president, would cause the courthouse and New York City. Accordingly, his presence is excused unless and until he is called by either party to testify.”

Kaplan responded that the court does not accept Trump’s counsel’s “claims concerning alleged burdens on the courthouse or the City” if Trump were to testify at trial. The judge noted that Trump is under no legal obligation to be present or testify, and that Carroll’s counsel has signaled that they were not planning to call Trump as a witness.

Kaplan also cited Trump’s upcoming travel to a campaign event in New Hampshire on the third day of the scheduled trial, while pointing out that Trump is entitled by law as a former president to have Secret Service protection, and that additional security measures can be provided as well.

“If the Secret Service can protect him at that event, certainly the Secret Service, the Marshals Service, and the City of New York can see to his security in this very secure federal courthouse,” Kaplan wrote.

Kaplan also noted that Trump was notified of the April 25 start date of the trial since on or about Feb. 7, giving the former president “quite ample time within which to make whatever logistical arrangements should be made for his attendance.” The judge said that it’s “quite a bit more time” than he was given ahead of his recent historic indictment by a Manhattan grand jury in a case involving hush money payments made during his 2016 presidential campaign.

Kaplan concluded that Trump’s request for special jury instructions is “premature.”

“Mr. Trump is free to attend, to testify, or both. He is free also to do none of those things,” Kaplan wrote. “Should he elect not to appear or testify, his counsel may renew the request.”

“In the meantime, there shall be no reference by counsel for Mr. Trump in the presence of the jury panel or the trial jury to Mr. Trump’s alleged desire to testify or to the burdens that any absence on his part allegedly might spare, or might have spared, the Court or the City of New York,” Kaplan added.

Tacopina did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.