The interview, which was widely reported by RedState, saw Stephanopoulos not only criticize Mace for her support of Trump but also misrepresent legal verdicts against Trump, claiming that "judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape."
Trump's lawsuit targets Stephanopoulos' repeated assertions during the interview that Trump had been found “liable for rape.” While the jury had indeed found Trump liable for sexual abuse under New York law, it had not found him liable for rape. Stephanopoulos' question to Mace during the interview, “Judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming the victim of that rape. How do you square your endorsement of Donald Trump with the testimony we just saw,” is at the heart of the lawsuit.
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In the 20-page complaint, Trump’s attorney, Alejandro Brito, stated, “These statements were and remain false, and were made by Defendant Stephanopoulos with actual malice or with a reckless disregard for the truth given that Defendant Stephanopoulos knows that these statements are patently and demonstrably false.” Brito further emphasized that the jury had expressly found that Trump did not commit rape, a fact that Stephanopoulos was aware of yet chose to misrepresent.
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The complaint, which is available for public viewing, alleges two counts — one for defamation per se (statements automatically deemed harmful) and one for defamation per quod (statements the plaintiff must prove caused damage) — and seeks an unspecified amount of damages.
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The complaint highlights that while the jury found Trump liable for defamation and sexual abuse in the E. Jean Carroll suit, it did not find him liable for rape. Stephanopoulos was aware of this, as he had specifically asked Carroll about it in an interview following the initial verdict in May of 2023.
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However, Stephanopoulos and ABC may have some room for defense. Following the initial verdict and Carroll's repeated post-verdict assertions that Trump had raped her, Trump countersued Carroll for defamation. In dismissing that counterclaim, Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled that Carroll's use of the term "rape" to describe Trump's actions was "substantially true."
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U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed Trump’s argument, ruling that Carroll’s statement on CNN was substantially true. Kaplan concluded that there “would have been no different effect on the mind of an average listener.”
Despite this, Stephanopoulos' comments during the Mace interview were incorrect — a fact that he was or should have been aware of. No juries found Trump liable for rape, and one judge's interpretation of "sexual abuse" as equivalent to rape is currently under appeal.
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The lawsuit has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida and is pending before Judge Cecilia Altonaga, who was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2003. While this does not guarantee the outcome of the litigation, it does ensure that Judge Kaplan, who has been criticized for his disregard of legal definitions and distinctions, will not preside over the case. The case continues to unfold, with the final verdict yet to be determined.
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