Supreme Court Dismisses Trump’s Appeal in Carroll Case

The Supreme Court has denied Trump’s appeal against a ruling that he sexually assaulted E Jean Carroll, leaving him liable for $5 million in damages.

The US Supreme Court will not hear President Donald Trump’s appeal of a civil case where he was found to have defamed and sexually abused writer E Jean Carroll. This decision enforces a New York jury’s ruling that awarded Carroll $5 million in damages related to the alleged assault that took place in the 1990s, followed by Trump’s claims on social media that the incident was fabricated.

Trump has persistently denied the allegations and contends that the judge overseeing the civil trial improperly allowed certain evidence to influence the jury’s perception of him. A federal appeals court previously upheld the jury’s verdict and rejected a request for a new trial, leading to Trump’s appeal to the Supreme Court for a final review.

The court’s decision not to take up the case is typical, as they often do not provide commentary on their rulings. This marks Trump’s last opportunity to overturn the unanimous verdict against him, now obligating him to pay the damages awarded to Carroll.

In response to the ruling, Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, expressed satisfaction, stating that the Supreme Court’s decision “affirms once and for all the jury’s unanimous verdict that President Donald J Trump sexually assaulted and defamed E Jean Carroll.” Kaplan emphasized that all of Trump’s attempts to appeal the ruling had failed and that the decision holds him accountable for his actions.

Post-ruling, Trump took to Truth Social to outline his ongoing battle against what he termed the “Weaponization and Lawfare Case”. He criticized the “ridiculous claim of Defamation” and insisted that the case represents an attack against the United States and its principles, claiming it should never happen to another president or candidate.

He labeled the New York law under which Carroll sued him as arbitrary, stating, “New York State created a Law, for an instant speck of time, going back many decades, in order to wrongfully ‘nab’ me… This Injustice cannot be allowed to stand!” In his appeal to the Supreme Court, Trump’s legal team argued that evidence presented to jurors should not have included a 2005 Access Hollywood tape, where Trump was heard making controversial remarks about women.

The jury had previously determined that Trump sexually abused and defamed Carroll but did not support her rape accusation as classified by New York’s legal standards. Carroll, now 81, initiated the lawsuit following an incident she claims occurred in a department store dressing room in Manhattan, stemming from Trump’s denial of her accusations on his social media platform in 2022.

Trump’s defense throughout has maintained that Carroll was “not my type” and accused her of lying regarding the incident.