Donald Trump was found by a jury to have sexually assaulted a columnist and what happens now could define his re-election bid.
The former United States President was found to have sexually abused advice columnist E. Jean Carroll in a rape and defamation trial.
Nine jurors announced their verdict on Tuesday, May 9, and found Trump did not rape Ms Carroll but did sexually abuse her, and awarded her $5million in damages.
Ms Carrol, 79, and her lawyer Roberta Kaplan did not speak to reporters outside the courtroom but Ms Kaplan said "we are very happy" following the verdict.
But within minutes of the decision, Mr Trump reacted with fury maintaining he didn’t even know Ms Carroll.
“I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHO THIS WOMAN IS. THIS VERDICT IS A DISGRACE – A CONTINUATION OF THE GREATEST WITCH HUNT OF ALL TIME!” he wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
The verdict was announced on Tuesday in a federal courtroom in New York City after just three hours of deliberations.
The panel - of six men and three women - rejected Ms Carroll’s claims she was raped, but found Trump liable for sexually abusing her.
Jurors found that Ms Carroll proved her 2019 lawsuit claiming that the 45th president abused her in a Bergdorf Goodman fitting room - most likely in 1996.
People in the court gallery cried tears of joy when the verdict finding Mr Trump liable for sexual abuse was read.
However, the verdict could have enormous ramifications for Mr Trump who has already launched his White House re-election bid in 2024.
What did E. Jean Carroll accuse Trump of?
The 79-year-old former Elle columnist testified that she had a chance encounter with Mr Trump at the Bergdorf Goodman store across the street from Trump Tower in 1996.
She said it was a light-hearted interaction in which they teased each other about trying on a piece of lingerie before Mr Trump became violent inside a dressing room.
The former president denied the allegation and claimed he had never met Ms Carroll.
The writer said Mr Trump damaged her reputation by lying about it online - which he denied.
Ms Carroll also filed a second lawsuit against Mr Trump in New York last year after adult victims of sexual assault were given a window of one year to file civil actions against their assailants where the statute of limitations has expired.
The columnist was seeking damages after accusing Mr Trump of assaulting her in a department store changing room in the mid-1990s.
How did Mr Trump respond to the allegations?
The former president dismissed the allegations and claimed that Ms Carroll was "totally lying" and a "nut job."
Mr Trump claimed he had never met the former columnist - despite being pictured with her in 1987 along with their spouses.
He said: “I’ve never met this person in my life.
"She is trying to sell a new book – that should indicate her motivation. It should be sold in the fiction section.”
Mr Trump also claimed that he would never have assaulted her because she was “not my type.”
However, during the trial Ms Carroll gave multiple days of frank, occasionally emotional testimony, buttressed by two friends who told jurors she reported the alleged attack to them in the moments and day afterward.
Jurors also heard from Jessica Leeds, a former stockbroker who testified that Mr Trump abruptly groped her against her will on an airplane in the 1970s, and from Natasha Stoynoff, a writer who said Mr Trump forcibly kissed her against her will while she was interviewing him for a 2005 article.
After the ruling Ms Carroll said in a statement: "I filed this lawsuit against Donald Trump to clear my name and to get my life back. 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.
"I would like to express my deep and lasting gratitude to all those who have stood by me from the start, especially my incredible and fearless legal team, led by Robbie Kaplan, who never, ever backed down in pursuit of truth and justice."
What will happen to Mr Trump now?
Ms Carroll, 79, will be awarded a total of $5m in damages, $2.7m of which are compensatory and $280,000 of which are punitive after Mr Trump was found to have defamed Ms Carroll in October 2022 after he posted on Truth social and called her allegations a "con job."
The jury also awarded $20,000 in punitive damages against Mr Trump over a claim of battery made by Ms Carroll.
Mr Trump's team have claimed he will appeal the verdict after his team labelled it a "bogus case."
Where does this leave his White House bid?
The former president has made no secret of his desire to get re-elected back to the White House in 2024.
Donald Trump's lawyer Joe Tacopina said there are "plenty of issues" to deal with but he was glad his client was not branded a rapist.
He said outside the court: "For me it's about the results. While it was strange, part of me was obviously very happy that Donald Trump was not branded a rapist."
However, his lawyers already have a busy task ahead of them as the former president faces 34 felony charges in relation to alleged hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels in the run up to the 2020 election.
The payments were made to cover up an alleged extramarital affair, according to authorities.
He is also the first US history to face criminal charges and if found guilty would be prevented from running for re-election.
But despite all the controversy, the former president's Republican base continue to stick with Mr Trump.
Polls have largely indicated he is the favourite amongst Republicans ahead of Florida governor Ron DeSantis and with each charge his popularity rises - with Mr Trump claiming the most recent verdict was a "witch hunt."
Mr Trump has the support of his wife Melania, despite all the charges, as he "achieved tremendous success in his first administration, and he can lead us toward greatness and prosperity once again."
However, that decision will remain ultimately be placed with the voters - and courts.
