DENVER (CN) — Attorneys for Taylor Swift and the former Denver disc jockey she accuses of groping her opened the trial Tuesday by telling the eight-member civil jury very different stories about the night in question.
“Let's be clear about something from the onset: Inappropriate touching is offensive, it's wrong, and it should never be tolerated,” Gabriel McFarland, representing David Mueller, told the jury Tuesday morning.
Mueller sued Swift for tortious interference after he lost his job. She countersued for assault and battery.
“Let's also be clear that falsely accusing someone of inappropriate touching is equally offensive,” McFarland said. “It’s equally wrong and it too should not be tolerated.
“This case is not about whether inappropriately touching someone or falsely accusing someone of inappropriate touching is wrong. We know that’s wrong. … Both of those things are wrong.
“This case is about whether Mr. Mueller took his hand, put it underneath Ms. Swift’s skirt at a June 2, 2013 meet and greet and grabbed her rear. ... The second question, if you determine based on the evidence that he did not inappropriately touch Ms. Swift … was he fired as a result of the accusations, and what Ms. Swift’s team relayed to his employer, KYGO? That’s what this case is about in a nutshell.”
Mueller sued Swift in May 2015 for lost wages after he was as a morning host on Denver’s KYGO radio station. Mueller claimed KYGO was asked to “handle” him when Swift’s team complained that he had grabbed Swift’s butt under her skirt at a photo shoot before her concert at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Swift countersued Mueller in October 2015.
McFarland spent most of the day introducing Mueller to the jury, which was seated at 9:30 a.m.
“Mr. Mueller got into radio in 1994,” McFarland said. “After working in other fields, after doing some college work, he got a job in radio for five bucks an hour, and he fell in love with it. He’s worked in radio ever since 1994, at least up until the time Ms. Swift made her allegations.”
McFarland said Mueller never would want to jeopardize his “dream job” at KYGO by inappropriately touching a major pop star.
“Mr. Mueller, he was 51 years old at the time of the meet and greet,” McFarland said. “He had a beautiful girlfriend who he felt really strongly about, who he had told that he loved. He had a wonderful job, he had his dream job. Ms. Swift’s contention is that he came in with Ms. Melcher [Mueller’s girlfriend], introduced himself as a KYGO morning show host, and 30 seconds later had his hand up her skirt.
“I don't know what kind of person does something like that, but it’s not the person who has his dream job.”
McFarland also drew the jury’s attention to Swift’s apparent lack of response to the alleged fondling, and pointed out a number of people who had been in the room when the photo was taken, including Swift’s bodyguard, tour manager and assistant.