‘It was a definite grab’: Taylor Swift tells court
CGTN
["north america"]
Share
Copied
Taylor Swift on Thursday began testifying in a case against former DJ David Mueller in Denver, Colorado.
The 27-year-old singer accused Mueller, 55, of groping her during a photograph ahead of a Denver concert in 2013.
“He stayed latched on to my bare ass cheek as I lurched away from him. (His hand) didn't let go," she told the jury.
“I felt him grab on to my ass cheek under my skirt. He grabbed my ass underneath my skirt."
Swift used the word “ass” dozens of times on the witness stand in responding to inquiries from Muller’s attorney.
Swift called the act a sexual assault. "It was a very shocking thing. I had never dealt with something like this before."
Swift said her security guard Greg Dent saw Mueller lift her skirt but no one could witness the actual groping since someone had to be underneath her to see what was going on. “We didn’t have anyone positioned there,” said Swift.
When asked about how felt about Mueller being fired, the singer-songwriter become more serious. “I’m being blamed for the unfortunate events of his life that are a product of his decisions, not mine.”
Mueller has denied such allegations. He testified that the photo was “weird and awkward,” but claimed that his hand may have touched her ribs, well above where his arm is shown.
He admitted that he wasn’t sure where his hand was because he was concentrating on the photographer.
A sign in the windows across the street from Denver Federal Court where the
Taylor Swift groping trial was to resume in Denver, US, August 9, 2017. / Reuters Photo
A sign in the windows across the street from Denver Federal Court where the
Taylor Swift groping trial was to resume in Denver, US, August 9, 2017. / Reuters Photo
Sue and countersue
Mueller filed a lawsuit against Swift in 2015, alleging that she and her team cost him his job by telling his employer about the incident.
Mueller was invited to a “meet-and-greet” with Taylor Swift during her Red Tour in 2013. However, he was later removed from the concert by security guards.
Two days later on June 4, 2013, he was fired by the KYGO station where he hosted a daily radio show in the early mornings.
He is asking for a 3 million US dollars in compensation for his subsequent losses.
Swift countersued, alleging that Mueller had sexually assaulted her. She asked for a symbolic one-dollar compensation.
Back in 2013 when the incident happened, Swift, then 23, didn’t file a police report. Her mother, Andrea Swift, testified on Wednesday that the singer's management wanted to keep the matter out of the public eye.
"I did not want this event to define her life," she said. The trial continues.