Trump angrily responds to New York jury decision holding him liable for sexual assault

Former President Trump took to his social media site Tuesday evening to rail about a New York jury's decision holding him liable for sexual assault and defamation.

"This was a very unfair trial, that's all you have to say," Trump stated in one of three videos and three text posts on his Truth Social site.

The postings came hours after Trump was ordered to pay $5 million to journalist E. Jean Carroll, who accused the then-real estate mogul of the assault in a Manhattan high-end store in 1996.

Carroll did not speak to reporters as she left the courthouse on Tuesday afternoon. She later issued a statement.

“I filed this lawsuit against Donald Trump to clear my name and to get my life back,” she said in the statement. “Today, the world finally knows the truth. This victory is not just for me but for every woman who has suffered because she was not believed.”

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Trump did not appear during the trial, nor did he testify. The lawsuit was a civil matter, not a criminal charge, and civil defendants are not required to appear in court during the proceedings. Trump's attorneys, however, did not present a defense, nor did they call witnesses to rebut Carroll's claims or to defend their client.

In a deposition, however, Trump was asked about a statement he made in an infamous Access Hollywood tape. In his response, Trump appeared to acknowledge that what he said on the recording about wantonly grabbing women was practice, not just locker room talk, as he and his supporters had said in dismissing the tape in the final weeks of the presidential campaign in the fall of 2016.

"Historically that's true with stars," Trump said in the deposition when asked about what he said on the Access Hollywood recording. "If you look over the last million years, I guess that's been largely true. Not always, but largely true. Unfortunately, or fortunately."

The jury's decision is the second court case Trump loses. In December, a jury in Manhattan also convicted a pair of Trump Organization companies on criminal tax fraud and charges they falsified business records.

Last month, Trump appeared in a New York state courtroom to declare himself not guilty of felony charges related to a hush money payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels.

Trump is also under investigation in Georgia related to a pressure campaign against state election officials after the 2020 presidential election. And a federal special counsel is investigating his role in the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack and his possession of government files, including classified documents.

Will Donald Trump have to register as a sex offender?

On Tuesday a federal jury found former President Donald Trump liable in a civil case for sexual abuse and defamation. Which brings up this question:

More on Trump verdict: Is Donald Trump a sex offender?

Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at the Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Trump on CNN: Angry on verdict in New York sexual assault case