ABC News and anchor George Stephanopoulos have agreed to issue a public statement of regret and pay $15 million to end a defamation suit by President-elect Trump for saying on the air that a New York jury found Trump "liable for rape." Court documents filed Saturday show that the money will go to a future presidential library for Trump, the Hill reports. ABC also will pay $1 million to cover attorneys' fees. The deal allows Trump and Stephanopoulos to avoid sitting for depositions a court had ordered for next week.
E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of raping her in a department store in the 1990s. In a civil case, a jury found that, under New York law, Trump sexually abused her. In an interview in March of Republican Rep. Nancy Mace, Stephanopoulos said 10 times that the jury had decided Trump "raped" the writer, per CNN. Trump argued in a lawsuit filed in Florida federal court that the anchor's statements constituted defamation. Trump is appealing rulings to pay Carroll nearly $90 million in her defamation cases against him, per the AP.
ABC also agreed to post a note on its website saying the network and Stephanopoulos "regret statements regarding President Donald J. Trump made during an interview by George Stephanopoulos with Rep. Nancy Mace." In return, Trump, who had sought unspecified damages, agreed to drop the suit and waive any legal claims involving the interview. Trump failed in a defamation claim against Carroll for using the word "rape" outside of court when a judge said that her account was substantially true and that there's only a minimal difference between "rape" and "sexual abuse," per the Hill. (More Donald Trump stories.)
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