TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The civil trial for Florida State Rep. Fabian Basabe continued on Tuesday inside a Leon County courtroom.
Basabe, a Miami Beach Republican, is representing himself in a case against two former staffers who accuse the state lawmaker of sexual harassment, battery and defamation.
Basabe took the stand on Tuesday, answering questions about his personal life.
Plaintiff’s attorney: “You are married?”
Basabe: “Yes.”
Plaintiff’s attorney: “To a woman?”
Basabe: “Yes.”
An attorney for the plaintiffs then showed the jury a photo of Basabe kissing a man.
Basabe: “His name is Renato.”
Plaintiff’s attorney: “And he lives with you correct?”
Basabe: “I don’t answer for people’s residency.”
Plaintiff’s attorney: “Is he your boyfriend?”
Basabe: “I don’t believe in those labels.”
On Monday, both of Basabe’s alleged victims testified in front of the jury.
Jurors on Tuesday also heard from the mother of one of the victims, who accused Basabe of slapping him on the buttocks and the face.
“I noticed that he was very, very, very upset and his face was red,” said Janette Frevola, who added through tears, “For him to treat us like this for no apparent reason, when we did nothing at all to him.”
Basabe representing himself has often added a layer of confusion to the proceedings.
In addition to witness testimony, snapshots of text messages and old tweets are being used as evidence to try to convince the Leon County jury that Basabe is liable for the alleged incidents.
Plaintiff’s attorney: “Is this the first time that anyone has made allegations that you sexually harassed them?”
Basabe: “There’s a lot of gossip.”
Witness testimony is expected to continue on Wednesday.
Basabe has had other accusers in the past.
In fact, one of them is a professional soccer player whose identity is being kept private.
That man addressed the court to preserve his testimony for a future litigation, but it was outside of the presence of the jury.
A stream of a portion of Tuesday’s hearing can be seen below:
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