Musician
takes stand to describe ‘very long grab’ by former DJ David Mueller, whom she
countersued after he accused her team of costing him his job.
Taylor Swift
took the witness stand on Thursday in her lawsuit claiming she was groped by a
radio host, testifying: “It was a definite grab. A very long grab.”
David
Mueller sued Swift and others on her team, claiming they cost him his job and
is seeking up to $3m in damages. Swift countersued, alleging sexual assault,
and is asking for a symbolic $1 judgment.
Swift’s
lawyers have said she does not know Mueller and has no incentive to target him
or to fabricate a story.
“He grabbed
my ass underneath my skirt,” she told the court in Denver, Colorado.
The pop star
also said a that Greg Dent, a security guard working for her, witnessed the
alleged grope.
She
testified that Dent saw Mueller “lift my skirt” and grab her, but that it was
impossible for anyone to see Mueller’s hand beneath her skirt and on her
buttock because they were posing for the photo with their backs to a wall.
Someone
would have had to have been underneath her to see the actual groping, Swift
said, “and we didn’t have anyone positioned there”.
She also
said she tried to get as far away from Mueller as she could but didn’t want to
stop the event and disappoint the few dozen people waiting in line.
She said she
could not have said anything about what happened without others already in the
photo area overhearing. She testified that “this was something I did not want
known”.
She said she
was absolutely stunned and told Mueller and his girlfriend, Shannon Melcher,
“thank you for coming” in a monotone voice before they left.
Mueller
testified on Wednesday that the photo taken before the concert was “weird and
awkward”, but he insisted that he touched Swift in the ribs, not in the rear.
Mueller
testified his hand was touching Swift’s skirt after he put his arm around her
and their arms got crossed: “My hand was at rib-cage level and apparently it
went down.”
The case is
being tried in federal court under a law allowing the proceeding when the
parties live in separate states and the dispute involves a damages claim higher
than $75,000.
On
Wednesday, Swift’s mother said she did not call police to report the
allegations, and it emerged that a liaison for the pop star asked the DJ’s boss
to keep a photo of the alleged assault confidential.
The
testimony highlighted an initial attempt to keep the encounter in Denver out of
the spotlight. Yet four years later, Swift and Mueller are embroiled in a
widely publicized federal court case.
Andrea Swift
said she wanted to keep the encounter private because she didn’t want it to
define her daughter’s life.
Mueller sued
Taylor Swift for at least $3m, saying she cost him his job and reputation.
Swift
countersued, claiming sexual assault. She says she wants to be an example to
other assault victims.
The Guardian
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