Trump loses another round in defamation case filed by rape accuser

Donald Trump lost another round in a defamation lawsuit filed against him by a former magazine columnist who accused him of rape.

A federal judge denied Trump's request to pause his deposition, which is scheduled for Oct. 19 in the complaint filed by Elle magazine advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who accused the former president of sexually assaulting her in the mid-1990s at a Manhattan department store, reported CNN.

Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled there was no reason to delay the depositions and document collections because a federal appeals court could decide the lawsuit's outcome either way.

Trump denied Carroll's allegations, saying she was "totally lying" and not even his "type," and accused her of making up the assault to "sell a new book."

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Carroll filed her defamation in state court, but the Justice Department headed by attorney general William Barr took over Trump's defense in September 2020 at the White House's request, saying the president could not be sued because he was a federal employee.

However, Kaplan ruled against the department and found that Trump was not acting in his official capacity when he accused Carroll of lying, and thus wasn't covered by a law protecting federal employees from litigation related to the performance of their duties.

The Justice Department appealed that ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, where it is still pending.