CNN Legal Analyst: Whole Trump Rape Trial Riding On Carroll Testimony — And Trump Lawyer’s ‘Ability to Undermine’ Credibility

CNN Senior Legal Affairs Correspondent Paula Reid said the ongoing Trump rape trial is “riding on” E. Jean Carroll’s testimony — and trial attorney Joe Tacopina’s “ability to undermine” it.

Tacopina began cross-examining Carroll last week in the defamation suit Carroll filed in 2019 when now-former President Donald Trump accused her of lying about being raped by him. Her testimony continued Monday and was set to wrap up on Tuesday.

On Tuesday morning’s edition of CNN This Morning, co-anchor Kaitlan Collins recapped Tacopina’s questioning, and asked Reid what to expect on the final day of Carroll’s testimony:

COLLINS: In a few hours, lawyers for E. Jean Carroll are expected to call two women to the stand in the former columnists battery and defamation trial against former President Trump. One of Carroll’s friends is expected to testify because Carroll said that she confided in her immediately after the alleged rape that she says happened in the mid-1990s. Carroll’s attorneys are also expected to call Jessica Leeds to the stand. She claims that Trump sexually assaulted her while sitting in first class on an airplane back in 1979. An accusation the former president has denied, I should note.

E. Jean Carroll is suing Trump, alleging that he raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman department store in the mid-90s. The former president has steadfastly denied it. His lawyer, Joe Tacopina, has just wrapped up a two-day cross-examination of Carroll. His line of questioning focused in part on Carroll’s shopping trips, media interviewers, her book, and a 2012 episode of “Law and Order SVU”.

Our CNN senior legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid has been tracking this trial and joins us now. What are we expecting to happen here and what have we seen playing

out, you know, not just in this cross-examination but now as they’re trying to establish this pattern to back up her allegations?

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: What was so interesting yesterday, when I was in court, is when last week was very emotional. At times she answered questions through tears. Yesterday was very technical. Joe Tacopina, what he was trying to do is present evidence to her to show a pattern of what he alleges are discrepancies between what she has said publicly and what she said in this courtroom.

For example, he threw up a Facebook post that she put up describing herself as a massive fan of “The Apprentice.” Another Facebook post where she asked her followers if they would have sex with Donald Trump for $17,000. And she responded saying, look, yes, I like the show, and, yes, I made jokes about having sex with Donald Trump.

Then he went on to press an issue that he has pressed repeatedly here which is, look, you have an advice column where you advise women who have been assaulted to report their assault, but that’s not what you did. And they presented different columns that she had written. And she said, quote, I would never call the police for something I was ashamed of.

And they also tried to draw discrepancies between how she describes her life in interviews as being, quote, fabulous, but then talked about how much she was suffering here in court. And she said, I don’t want anybody to know that I suffer.

Now, arguably, the whole trial is riding on her testimony and Joe Tacopina’s ability to undermine the credibility of her story.

HARLOW: You think we hear from Trump?

REID: It’s unlikely. At this point he is not expected to testify. Though Carroll’s attorneys have said they plan to use parts of his previous deposition in their case.

Watch above via CNN This Morning.