Jessica Leeds Accusation: Alleged Groping on a First-Class Flight in the Late 1970s
Tier 4No Active Investigation1979-01-01 to 2023-05-09
Factual Summary
Jessica Leeds alleged that Donald Trump sexually assaulted her during a first-class flight from either Dallas or Atlanta to New York in the late 1970s. Leeds was in her late 30s at the time and working in sales. She stated that a flight attendant escorted her from coach to first class, where she was seated next to Trump. The conversation began cordially over an in-flight dinner.
After the meal was cleared, Leeds alleged that Trump began groping her without warning or prior conversation. She described him grabbing her breasts and stated: "It was like he had 40 zillion hands." She described the encounter as a "tussling match" in which she resisted. When Trump began putting his hand up her skirt, Leeds said she found the strength to wriggle out of her seat and return to her original seat in coach, where she remained for the rest of the flight. She estimated the assault lasted a few seconds, though "it seemed like forever."
Leeds came forward publicly in an article published by the New York Times on October 12, 2016, four days after the release of the Access Hollywood recording in which Trump described grabbing women without consent. Leeds was 74 years old at the time.
On May 2, 2023, Leeds testified as a corroborating witness in the E. Jean Carroll civil trial in the Southern District of New York. She was 81 years old at the time of her testimony. She described the incident in detail consistent with her 2016 account. The jury in the Carroll trial found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, and Leeds' testimony was admitted as evidence of a pattern of conduct.
Leeds told NPR in 2016 that she had "jumped out of her skin" when she heard Trump deny sexual assault allegations during a presidential debate, because his denial contradicted her direct experience. In a 2024 CNN interview, she stated she "laughed out loud" when she heard Trump again deny her allegations.
Primary Sources
1. New York Times: original article in which Leeds came forward, October 12, 2016
2. Testimony transcript, Carroll v. Trump, No. 22-cv-10016 (S.D.N.Y.), May 2, 2023, available via PACER
3. PBS NewsHour: "In rape trial, woman testifies that she was also sexually attacked by Trump," May 2023: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/in-rape-trial-woman-testifies-that-she-was-also-sexually-attacked-by-trump
Corroborating Sources
1. NPR: "Trump Accuser Jessica Leeds Tells NPR She 'Jumped Out' Of Her Skin During Debate," October 2016
2. Democracy Now!: "Trump Accuser Jessica Leeds 'Really Pleased' with Verdict After Testifying in E. Jean Carroll Case," May 2023
3. CNN: "Jessica Leeds: Trump accuser said she 'laughed out loud' when she heard him again deny her assault allegation," September 2024
4. ABC News: "Woman who accused Trump of groping her on an airplane doubts Weinstein backlash will prompt change," October 2017
Counterarguments and Context
Trump has denied the allegations in their entirety. During the 2016 campaign, Trump stated at a rally that Leeds "would not be my first choice" and suggested the allegation was fabricated. His campaign called Leeds' account "fiction." In the Carroll trial, Trump's legal team did not call witnesses to rebut Leeds' testimony specifically. The incident allegedly occurred approximately 40 years before Leeds came forward, and no contemporaneous physical evidence or documentation of the flight exists. Leeds has stated she told friends about the incident at the time but did not report it to authorities.
Author's Note
This entry is classified as Tier 4 because the allegation rests on Leeds' detailed public account and sworn testimony rather than on an adjudicated finding specific to her case. Her testimony was admitted in a federal trial under evidentiary rules governing prior acts, and the jury in that trial found Trump liable for sexual abuse of E. Jean Carroll. The consistency of Leeds' account across seven years of public statements and sworn testimony is notable, as is the fact that she came forward independently of the Carroll litigation.