Trump losing E. Jean Carroll case would have 'a similar effect' as OJ civil case: legal expert

Former president Donald Trump losing the civil case in which he is being accused of rape and defamation would have "a similar effect" as when O.J. Simpson famously lost a civil trial following the finding of "not guilty" in his criminal case, a New York Times Magazine legal writer said on Wednesday.

Emily Bazelon, a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine and the Truman Capote Fellow for Creative Writing and Law at Yale Law School, was a guest on The Beat with Ari Melber on Wednesday when the host asked her about the importance of the ongoing trial in which Trump has said he won't be mounting a formal defense.

Melber presented what he says is a "dumb" question about the potential outcome in that case.

"If Donald Trump loses this case - it's civil in nature, which means there's no grand, larger reckoning in a civil system, there's no possibility of prison, that's not what the civil system does. But historically in America, in can matter a great deal when a court system and a jury find something. Does it matter if he is found culpable in this case when it won't materially affect his life?" the host asked.

Bazelon responded that, "It will matter to the history books. It will matter to E. Jean Carroll who thinks that she has been defamed and she is trying to restore her reputation." She then asked if Melber meant to ask if it matters to Trump "politically."

"Not politically," he clarified, raising the specific example of O.J. Simpson and his civil loss, which he said was deemed as "relevant to his culpability" for the family, and the system, and the rest of O.J.'s life.

"I think that this has a similar effect, potentially. Civil judgments do matter," Bazelon said. She explained that, due to the nature of the claims being old and other factors, the civil system is "a good place for them" because they would be difficult to try in a criminal court, which requires findings beyond a reasonable doubt.

You can watch the video below or at the link.