TAYLOR-MADE VICTORY
Vindicated by jury, gets symbolic $1
IT’S A Swift victory.
A Denver jury ruled in Taylor Swift’s favor and determined her allegations that ex-radio DJ David Mueller groped her at a meet-and-greet four years ago are valid — concluding a contentious and highly publicized trial and requiring Mueller to pay out a symbolic $1 to the pop star.
“I want to thank Judge William J. Martinez and the jury for their careful consideration, my attorneys Doug Baldridge, Danielle Foley, Jay Schaudies and Katie Wright for fighting for me, and anyone who feels silenced by a sexual assault, and especially anyone who offered their support throughout this four-year ordeal and twoyear-long trial process,” Swift, 27, said in a statement.
“I acknowledge the privilege that I benefit from in life, in society and in my ability to shoulder the enormous cost of defending myself in a trial like this. My hope is to help those whose voices should also be heard. Therefore, I will be making donations in the near future to multiple organizations that help sexual assault victims defend themselves.”
The verdict wraps up a sixday trial in which Mueller and Swift — as well as the singer's mother and bodyguard — testified in Denver Federal Court.
The case hinged on a 2013 incident at a photo opportunity before one of Swift’s concerts at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Swift said Mueller reached beneath her skirt, grabbed her rear and refused to let go as they posed.
Swift took the stand Thursday — the fourth day of the trial — to testify that Mueller intentionally grabbed her rear end.
“He stayed latched onto my bare a-- cheek as I lurched away from him,” Swift told the jury. “It was a definite grab. A very long grab.”
Mueller, 55, maintained his innocence throughout. He lost his on-air job at the KYGO radio station in 2013 after Swift’s groping allegations surfaced, and sued the pop star two years later for costing him his job with her “false” claims. Swift countersued, alleging sexual assault.
During his testimony Aug. 8, Mueller contended he may have made contact with Swift’s rib cage or ribs during the encounter, but he said he never touched her inappropriately. He sought $3 million in damages in his lawsuit against the “Blank Space” singer.
Martinez tossed Mueller’s case against Swift last week.
The jury of six women and two men deliberated just 41/2 hours Monday afternoon before reaching its verdict. The panel also ruled that Frank Bell, the singer’s radio handler, and Andrea Swift, her mother, did not intentionally interfere with Mueller’s job contract, which he claimed in his suit.