A former model has accused President Trump of sexually assaulting her at the U.S. Open in 1997, when she was 24 years old.
Amy Dorris told the Guardian that the President approached her outside the bathroom of his VIP box at the tennis tournament. He then allegedly tried to kiss and grope her.
“He just shoved his tongue down my throat and I was pushing him off,” Dorris told the Guardian. “And then that’s when his grip became tighter and his hands were very gropey and all over my butt, my breasts, my back, everything.”
Dorris first met Trump when her then-boyfriend, Jason Binn, a magazine publisher and a friend of Trump’s, took her to New York City for a long weekend. Dorris met Trump at Trump Tower with Binn a day before the alleged assault. “He came on very strong right away,” Dorris recounted to the Guardian. “It seemed typical of a certain guy, people who just feel like they’re entitled to do what they want.”
Through his lawyers, Trump denied the allegations to the Guardian, pointing out that Dorris attended a memorial for designer Gianni Versace days after the alleged assault and sat next to him during the service. Through his lawyers, Trump also underscored that the timing of the allegations was close to the November election.
Photos from the event provided to the Guardian show Dorris posing with Trump. Dorris also reportedly told her mother, a friend, and a therapist about the encounter, who confirmed that Dorris had recounted a similar version of events. (Binn did not respond to the Guardian‘s request for comment.)
Dorris is the 26th woman to have accused Trump of sexual misconduct.