Swift groping case to open in Denver

A few moments at a backstage photo session four years ago are about to be relived, as lawyers for pop star Taylor Swift and a former radio DJ she accuses of groping her began picking jurors Monday in their dueling lawsuits in Denver.

Radio host David Mueller sued the singer-songwriter, saying he was falsely accused and that she should have called police instead of his bosses, who fired him soon after the June 2013 encounter. He’s seeking up to $3 million in damages. Swift countersued, claiming sexual assault, setting up the civil trial where she is expected to testify.

Swift is seeking a verdict that awards her only $1, while holding Mueller responsible and “serving as an example to other women who may resist publicly reliving similar outrageous and humiliating acts.”

Mueller, then 51, was a morning host at a country music station when he was assigned to attend Swift’s concert at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Mueller was backstage with his girlfriend when they met with Swift, then 23, in a curtained enclosure. They posed for a photo and left.

Swift’s bodyguard confronted Mueller with the allegation that he had reached under the singer’s dress and grabbed her buttocks. Mueller denied the allegation and asked that they call the police. Mueller’s attorney, Gabriel McFarland, argues that Mueller may have been misidentified after someone else touched Swift. Opening statements are to being Tuesday.

RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION 2016 Taylor Swift says she was groped by radio DJ David Mueller at a backstage photo session in Denver in 2013.