Washington — President-elect Donald Trump has been ordered by a federal judge to sit for a deposition next week in his defamation lawsuit against ABC News and anchor George Stephanopoulos.
Magistrate Judge Lisette Reid issued the order on Friday saying Trump will have to give an in-person deposition next week as part of the lawsuit he filed against ABC News in March that alleged Stephanopoulos made defamatory comments on air.
In a March 10 interview with Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, Stephanopoulos said that Trump had been “found liable for rape.”
Last year, a jury in New York found Trump liable for sexual abuse of the writer E. Jean Carroll and defaming her with statements he made denying Carroll’s allegations. The judge who heard the case said the sexual abuse that Trump was found liable for — forcibly penetrating Carroll with his fingers — is commonly understood as “rape,” even though the statute defines it as a separate offense.
In his complaint, Trump accused Stephanopoulos of acting “with actual malice or with a reckless disregard for the truth,” and claimed Stephanopoulos “knows that these statements are patently and demonstrably false.”
Judge Reid said Trump’s deposition will be in person next week in the Southern District of Florida, which is where his Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Beach is located. The questioning will be limited to four hours, Reid said.
Reid also ordered Stephanopoulos to sit for a deposition next week, either in person or remotely. His deposition is also limited to four hours.
Shawna Mizelle and
contributed to this report.
