Supreme Court rejects Trump's appeal in E. Jean Carroll sexual assault case. $5 million verdict stands

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Donald Trump's appeal, leaving in place a $5 million verdict against him for sexual assault and defamation of writer E. Jean Carroll.

Supreme Court rejects Trump's appeal in E. Jean Carroll sexual assault case. $5 million verdict stands

The United States Supreme Court has refused to consider Donald Trump's appeal, effectively ending his legal challenge against a civil verdict that found him liable for sexual assault and defamation. The court did not provide a reason for its decision, which is standard practice as the institution typically rejects the majority of appeals it receives.

The ruling means a 2023 jury verdict remains enforceable. A panel in New York had previously found the former president responsible for sexually abusing columnist E. Jean Carroll in a department store dressing room in 1996 and later defaming her when she publicly accused him. The jurors awarded Carroll five million dollars in damages.

This marked Trump's final opportunity to overturn the unanimous decision. His attorneys had raised multiple objections, including claims that Carroll never reported the incident to law enforcement and that no witnesses existed. They also argued the trial judge improperly allowed evidence they considered irrelevant, including the infamous Access Hollywood tape in which Trump boasted about groping women.

Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan, issued a statement saying the Supreme Court's action "once and for all confirms the unanimous jury verdict that President Donald J. Trump committed sexual assault and defamed E. Jean Carroll." She added that Trump's repeated attempts to appeal had failed and that the ruling "ends his efforts to avoid accountability for his conduct."

Although jurors found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, they rejected Carroll's claim that the incident constituted rape under New York criminal law. The assault allegedly occurred at a Manhattan department store in 1996. Carroll first described the encounter in a 2019 magazine article and filed her lawsuit in 2022.

Trump has consistently denied the allegations, calling them a "scam." Carroll responded by filing a separate defamation suit. A New York jury ruled in her favor, and an appeals court upheld that decision before the case reached the nation's highest court.

Source: RMF24

Source: RMF24