Report: Judge could soon decide whether sexual misconduct case against Trump should proceed
A judge could decide as soon as next month whether a lawsuit that accuses President Trump of sexual misconduct should proceed, according to a report by USA Today.
The case involves Summer Zervos, a former contestant on NBC's "The Apprentice," who accused Mr. Trump a year ago of "unwanted sexual touching." She was one of several women at the time who accused him, then the GOP presidential nominee, of sexual misconduct following the surfacing of the Access Hollywood tape. Zervos said that Mr. Trump had kissed and groped her in 2007.
She filed a defamation lawsuit against Mr. Trump, when he was president-elect, over his denials of her allegations.
Lawyers have until the end of the month, the report said, to file arguments related to the president's request to dismiss the case. If the lawsuit moves forward, however, it could force Mr. Trump to comply with a subpoena for documents, the report said.
Zervos said last October that she had contacted Mr. Trump after she had been on his reality show to meet with him about the Trump Organization and snagged an appointment with him.
"When I arrived, he kissed me on the lips. I was surprised, but felt that perhaps that was just his form of greeting," Zervos said in a statement that she read, sometimes haltingly and and often with tears. Trump praised her intelligence and attractiveness and said "that he would love to have me work for him," according to Zervos. He promised to contact her a few days later, when he was in Los Angeles, then sent her off with another kiss on the lips. "This made me feel very nervous and embarrassed," Zervos said.
After that, Zervos agreed to meet Trump in Los Angeles, at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Trump, she said, greeted her with an "open-mouthed" kiss and pulled her towards him, then kissed her again and put his hand on her breast, as she attempted to push him away. She said she rebuffed his advances but was later offered a job at one of his golf courses at a salary that was half of what she sought.
