Top

Watch: Donald Trump seen kissing former aide, see what his team has to say

Johnson’s attorney, however, said if nothing else, the footage proved her claims were truthful.

Washington: US President Donald Trump lawyers refuted the allegations of then-campaign staffer Alva Johnson in 2016 that Trump forcibly kissed her without consent.

Johnson’s attorney, however, said if nothing else, the footage proved her claims were truthful.

In the brief video, which was reportedly taken by campaign volunteer Brian Hayes, Trump was seen placing both of his arms on Johnson's shoulders and appears to plant a kiss near her right cheek, though it's not completely clear if he makes contact with her mouth.

In a February lawsuit and interview with The Washington Post, Johnson had alleged the President grabbed her hand and leaned in for a kiss before a Florida rally on August 24, 2016. She turned her head, which caused Trump to kiss the side of her mouth, she alleged, leaving her humiliated.

Trump and his legal team have long denied Johnson's account. In February, then-White House press secretary Sarah Sanders dismissed Johnson's allegation as "absurd on its face," adding: "This never happened and is directly contradicted by multiple highly credible eye witness accounts."

Hassan Zavareei, a lawyer for Johnson, said in a statement the video "corroborates exactly what Alva said."

"Now, whether or not everybody would have felt violated by that is an open question. But Alva was. And she testified exactly why she felt uncomfortable. She testified that she didn't really know how to react when it happened and that she was confused and uncomfortable," he wrote Thursday.

Earlier this year, Johnson said she did not fully process the gravity of the encounter until about six weeks after the alleged kiss, on October 7, 2016, when The Post published the "Access Hollywood" tape of Trump bragging about kissing, groping and forcing himself on women.

In 2005, Trump said: "You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful - I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything."

In a separate on Wednesday filing after the video was released, Johnson's attorneys alleged Trump's legal team had removed the video's metadata, preventing Johnson from knowing "who created the video, when it was created, and other important information about its origins."

Previously, two Trump supporters that Johnson identified as witnesses - a campaign official and Pam Bondi, then the Florida attorney general - denied seeing the alleged kiss.

Johnson is one of 16 women to accuse the President of sexual misconduct. Many of the accusations came following the release of the Access Hollywood tape.

Next Story