Today in History: President Bill Clinton is charged with contempt of court
19 years ago, Bill Clinton was found to be in contempt of court for lying about having sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky.
Any person who lived anywhere but under a rock in the ’90s will remember the sexual harassment allegations against the then president of the United States of America (USA), Bill Clinton.
It started out with a lawsuit instituted by a former Arkansas state employee, Paula Jones, who had sued Clinton for allegedly propositioning her and exposing himself to her at a hotel on 8 May, 1991.
She filed her lawsuit on 6 May, 1994, two days before the expiration of the three-year statute of limitations, and sought $750 000 in damages.
The suit was initially filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, but Judge Susan Webber Wright ruled that a sitting President could not be sued and deferred the case until the conclusion of his term.
Both parties appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, which ruled in favour of Jones, finding that, “The President, like all other government officials, is subject to the same laws that apply to all other members of our society.”
Clinton then appealed to the US Supreme Court, but in a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals and on 27 May, 1997, and allowed the lawsuit to proceed.
Jones’ lawyers then took a decision to subpoena a number of other women whom they believed had been sexually harassed by Clinton.
One of them was Monica Lewinsky, a former White House employee.
It was during Clinton’s deposition in the process of this case that Clinton denied sexual and extra-marital relations with Lewinsky, saying “I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I’ve never had an affair with her.”
One of Lewinsky’s friends, Linda Trapp, in whom Lewinsky had confided and with whom she had discussed her sexual encounters with Clinton, came forward with evidence of Lewinsky’s relationship with Clinton.
Trapp had recorded conversations with Lewinsky in which Lewinsky had discussed her encounter with Clinton.
Trapp had also instructed Lewinsky not to dry clean or get rid of a blue dress that bore traces of Clinton’s semen.
The new conclusive evidence led to Judge Wright finding Clinton in contempt of court on 12 April, 1999, for giving “intentionally false” testimony in the Jones vs Clinton case a few years earlier.
Judge Wright ordered Clinton to pay $1 202 to the court and an additional $90 000 to Jones’ lawyers for expenses incurred.
Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at roodepoortrecord@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.
For free daily local news on the West Rand, also visit our sister newspaper websites
Remember to visit our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages to let your voice be heard!
