The United States Supreme Court has rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s appeal for a second time in the case involving a $5 million US verdict awarded to E. Jean Carroll. The jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming the former magazine columnist. Trump’s lawyers argued that the trial was unfair, but the justices declined to reconsider their previous decision from June regarding the 2023 jury verdict.
In addition to this case, the court is also considering Trump’s appeal of an $83.3 million US jury verdict for defaming Carroll in 2019, during his first term as president. Trump’s lawyers claim that presidential immunity protects him from Carroll’s claims and assert that lower courts erred in their decisions.
The legal battle between Trump and Carroll began when she alleged in her memoir that Trump had raped her in the 1990s. Trump has consistently denied these claims, calling them a “hoax” and a “con job.” The $5 million US verdict stemmed from Trump’s statements in 2022, where he dismissed Carroll’s allegations on social media.
Following the Supreme Court’s rejection of Trump’s appeal, Carroll received nearly $5.63 million US from Trump, which includes the original civil verdict amount plus interest. Trump’s lawyers have raised concerns about the impact of the presidential immunity issue on both the $83.3 million US verdict and the 2023 verdict.
In a significant 2024 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that former presidents have immunity from criminal prosecution for actions taken during their time in office. The Carroll cases are civil lawsuits and not criminal prosecutions, highlighting the complexity of the legal matters at hand.