Free Republic

As you can see from discussion of the Trump-Stephanopoulos defamation settlement, Judge Lewis Kaplan's post-verdict effort to redefine the result of the E. Jean Carroll case has proven extremely valuable to Trump adversaries who claim that Trump is a "rapist." The jury specifically found that Carroll did *not* prove that Trump raped her, even by the low standards in effect at the trial. You can look at the verdict form -- the jurors checked "No" on the rape question. Instead, the jury found that Trump "sexually abused" Carroll. You'd think that would be enough for Resistance types; they can accurately...

Habba quickly joined Trump's inner circle and became an attack dog against Democrats and his prosecutors. ....Habba was a legal spokeswoman for Trump, often taking on media outside courtrooms – and she became a senior advisor to the former and future president's campaign in the final months. Habba quickly emerged as a crowd favorite and is known for her brutal speeches going after Democrats. In the E. Jean Carroll case she had frequent disagreements with Judge Lewis Kaplan, who even threatened her with jail. At one point Judge Kaplan said: 'Ms Habba, you are on the verge of spending some...

Roberta Kaplan, a prominent lawyer best known for ending the ban on gay marriage and her advocacy work for sexual assault victims, is leaving the law firm she formed in 2017. Kaplan’s exit from Kaplan Hecker & Fink comes following reports to the New York Times from those who worked with her that she mistreated lawyers and cultivated an unprofessional office culture. She allegedly insulted employees, made inappropriate comments about their looks, and threatened their careers. Her lawyers denied those allegations and said Kaplan and her firm took allegations of workplace misconduct seriously. “There is nothing more unremarkable than trial...

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) intends to use the guilty plea of two defendants Thursday over the theft of Ashley Biden’s diary to pursue journalist James O’Keefe’s Project Veritas, which reportedly gave the diary to law enforcement in 2020. On Friday, Robert Kurlander, 58, and Aimee Harris, 40, pleaded guilty to stealing the diary of the presidential daughter, which included claims of inappropriate behavior by President Joe Biden, and conspiring to sell it to Project Veritas for $40,000. Ashley Biden had reportedly left her diary at the home of a friend before it was sold to Project Veritas. As...

Former President Donald Trump’s defense team is considering the possibility of requesting a new trial. This development comes in the wake of revelations concerning the presiding judge’s past connections to Carroll’s legal team, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest. ..... Snip..... Adding to the controversy, it was revealed that Shawn Crowley, one of Carroll’s lead counsels, is reported to have served previously as a law clerk for Judge Kaplan. Furthermore, it has been disclosed that the judge co-officiated Crowley’s wedding. “This issue is particularly concerning since Plaintiff’s other lead counsel, Shawn Crowley, served as Your Honor’s law clerk, and...

In a letter dated April 8, 2024, addressed to Chief Judge Swain of New York, Ashley Biden, daughter of Joe Biden, confirmed the authenticity of her previously ‘stolen’ diary. The diary, which has sparked considerable public and media attention due to Joe Biden’s perverted acts, became a subject of controversy when excerpts were leaked online. Ashley Biden’s letter, obtained by the New York Times, was submitted as part of a judicial proceeding against Aimee Harris, one of the individuals convicted of ‘stealing’ and selling her personal journal. In her correspondence, Ashely Biden expressed profound distress over the theft and subsequent...

Document reveals the FBI labeled Project Veritas as “news media,” and categorized the probe as a “Sensitive Investigative Matter” due to Veritas being journalists. This is a direct contradiction of the U.S. government’s in-court position that Project Veritas are not journalists. The whistleblower, who has several years of experience as an FBI Special Agent and is still on payroll with the Bureau, came to Project Veritas with the document after seeing what he calls “a number of troubling things that are happening in the FBI.” The document also shows the federal investigation was launched into Project Veritas the same day...

The Democratic superlawyer who resigned in disgrace from the #MeToo organization Time's Up after helping former New York governor Andrew Cuomo (D.) discredit his accusers is now defending Columbia University against a lawsuit alleging that it fosters a pervasive culture of anti-Semitism. Roberta Kaplan filed notice last month to represent Columbia and its sister college, Barnard, against lawsuits that accuse school leaders of enabling an "antisemitic hostile educational environment" in the wake of Hamas's terrorist attack on Israel. Students Against Antisemitism and a group of five Columbia students allege that school leaders have turned a blind eye as anti-Semitic activists...

When asked who they would vote for if the presidential election were to be held today, former President Donald Trump bests President Joe Biden by a 10% margin with respondents favoring Trump 46.

Trump must pay $ 83.3 MILLION to E. Jean Carroll for defamation, a federal jury has ruled

Former President Donald Trump turned up in Manhattan federal court Wednesday for a second day in a row, as a jury is set to decide how much he must pay in damages to E. Jean Carroll, after he was found liable last year of both defaming the magazine writer in 2022, and sexually abusing her in the ’90s. *** The “Ask E. Jean” columnist is asking for more than $10 million in damages. That’s on top of $5 million that jurors last spring ordered Trump to cough up. *** Donald Trump threw his hands in the air and said he'd...

Can we please call a moving van and a fumigator to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, and – when the poison clears – can we have the house cleaned by a religious team? Rabbi, priest, imam – whoever and whatever it takes to get a ritual cleansing for the ages done of the White House, and remove the scum that has to be clinging to the walls with every breath Joe Biden takes in that hallowed place.You knew it was real, and I knew it was real. But in your heart of hearts, the things written in what was purported to be...

Conservative businessman Vivek Ramaswamy has caught up to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a first national poll, a surprising tie as both are preparing to join in 2024’s first primary debate next month. In the survey of likely Republican primary voters, Ramaswamy and DeSantis are tied at 12%, with former President Donald Trump continuing to dominate at 48%. “Ramaswamy outperformed six other hopefuls by more than double, marking a significant surprise in this poll,” said pollster Doug Kaplan.

A judge on Tuesday said E. Jean Carroll, the New York writer who won a $5 million jury verdict against Donald Trump last month, can pursue a separate $10 million defamation lawsuit against the former U.S. president. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan ruled in favor of the former Elle magazine columnist, after Trump had argued that the defamation case must be dismissed because jurors had concluded he never raped her. A spokeswoman for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump’s lawyer Alina Habba was in Miami, where Trump pleaded not guilty in a separate...

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump raged on social media early Wednesday against both his accuser and the judge who ruled against him in a sexual abuse and defamation civil case, just hours after he was found liable for a 1996 incident. “The partisan Judge & Jury on the just concluded Witch Hunt Trial should be absolutely ashamed of themselves for allowing such a travesty of Justice to take place,” Trump, 76, posted to Truth Social at 1 a.m. Wednesday. The 45th president went on to claim that US District Judge Lewis Kaplan should have allowed more evidence to be...

The federal judge presiding over E. Jean Carroll's civil rape and defamation lawsuit against former President Donald Trump ruled Thursday he'll use an anonymous jury in the case, noting Trump's inflammatory rhetoric about the justice system. "It bears mention that Mr. Trump repeatedly has attacked courts, judges, various law enforcement officials and other public officials, and even individual jurors in other matters,” U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan of New York said in his decision. He also said he'll refuse to allow jurors' names to become public, adding, "If jurors’ identities were disclosed, there would be a strong likelihood of unwanted...

The fraud and money laundering case against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was reassigned to a new judge after the formerly appointed judge recused herself over a possible conflict of interest. Judge Ronnie Abrams of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York removed herself from the case last week because her husband is a law partner in a firm that worked with FTX previously. In Abrams' place comes Judge Lewis Kaplan, who has presided over a number of high-profile cases in recent years, including a defamation lawsuit brought against former President Donald Trump by E. Jean Carroll....

You can tell by the look on my face that he just pointed out something HUGE about what went down at Mar-a-Lago this week.

The parents of two transgender children have told how they supported them unconditionally, after they both decided to transition to the opposite sex from an early age. Ben Faryna and Sara Kaplan, from Berkeley, California, welcomed a biological daughter and then a biological son, to their family. But at the age of eight, James Kaplan, now 11, who was born a biological girl, realised he had to transition from female to male. And just a few years later Olivia Kaplan, now 7, who was biologically born a boy, realised at 4 that she wanted to transition from male to female....

The onetime girlfriend of Mark Judge, who is alleged by Christine Blasey Ford to have been present while Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in the 1980s, has emerged as a pivotal if hidden figure in this whole affair — and now she’s prepared to speak to the FBI and the Judiciary Committee about what she knows, according to a letter from her lawyer that I’ve obtained. Judge’s college girlfriend, Elizabeth Rasor, is represented by lawyer Roberta Kaplan, who sent a letter to the Judiciary Committee today. The letter, which was provided to me by a senior Senate Democratic aide on...