The United States Supreme Court has rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s appeal for the second time, upholding a $5 million US verdict in favor of E. Jean Carroll. The verdict came after a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming the former magazine columnist. This decision follows the court’s denial in June of Trump’s appeal regarding the 2023 jury verdict, which stemmed from allegations of raping Carroll in the 1990s in a Manhattan department store dressing room.
Trump’s lawyers argued that the trial was unfair, but the justices refused to reconsider their previous decision. The court’s order was issued without explanation, as the Supreme Court rarely grants requests for reconsideration. Additionally, the justices are also considering Trump’s appeal of an $83.3 million US jury verdict for defaming Carroll during his presidency, where he denied the claims and accused her of lying.
In response to the separate defamation trial, Trump’s legal team claims that presidential immunity protects him from Carroll’s accusations, and they argue that lower courts erred in ruling that he had forfeited that defense. The legal battle between Trump and Carroll began when she accused him of raping her in a department store dressing room in 1996, which Trump vehemently denied.
The $5 million US verdict centered on Trump’s statements in 2022 where he dismissed Carroll’s claims as a “hoax” and a “con job” on social media. Jurors concluded in 2023 that Trump had sexually abused and defamed Carroll but did not find evidence to support her claim of rape. Following the Supreme Court’s rejection of Trump’s appeal in June, Carroll received nearly $5.63 million US from Trump, including the original civil verdict plus interest.
Trump’s lawyers have raised concerns that the issue of presidential immunity in the $83.3 million US verdict could influence the 2023 case. The Supreme Court previously ruled in a landmark 2024 decision that former presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for actions taken during their presidency, which does not apply to civil lawsuits like the Carroll cases.