A federal jury in Manhattan ruled Trump liable today in the civil battery and defamation lawsuit filed by writer E. Jean Carroll. Carroll accused the former president and real estate tycoon of sexually assaulting her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s.
Although the jury did not find Trump guilty of rape, the panel of six men and three women did determine him responsible for sexual abuse and defamation. As a result, they awarded Carroll $2 million for battery and $3 million for defamation.
The former president and potential future candidate has consistently ridiculed, attacked, and dismissed Carroll’s accusations. Trump, who denied the allegations and claimed not to know Carroll well, referred to the decades-old incident as “a complete con job.” The ex-president suggested that the former Elle magazine columnist fabricated the assault in a Bergdorf’s dressing room and went public in 2017 to boost sales of her 2019 memoir.
After just over 2.5 hours of deliberation, the jury reached a unanimous verdict. This came after U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan’s jury instructions earlier in the week, which lasted an hour less than the actual deliberation time.
Trump’s legal team presented no defense, relying on the unsuccessful hope that the jurors would not be persuaded by Carroll’s case. Unlike a criminal case that requires “proof beyond a reasonable doubt,” a civil case only needs to meet the standard of “clear and convincing evidence.”
In addition to Carroll’s testimony, the two-week trial featured two other women who testified about being assaulted by Trump and a convoluted video deposition from the 76-year-old defendant in October 2022. In the deposition, Trump confused a photograph of Carroll with one of his second wife, Marla Maples.
Today’s verdict adds to the plethora of lawsuits, indictments, and investigations that the former one-term president faces.
Meanwhile the Stormy Daniels case and indictment from the Manhattan District Attorney continue to progress, Jack Smith is working on Jan. 6th case as well as the stolen classified documents, and in Georgia, the case against Trump for pressuring the A.G. to rig the election vote progresses. More indictments are looming.
It is likely Trump will file an appeal in the near future, because that is what he does. Ticktock MF’er!
After the verdict, a smiling Carroll exited the Manhattan courtroom with her attorneys, not offering any comments to the press.