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Verdict Reached In Trump, E. Jean Carroll Defamation Case

Sarah Arnold
Sarah Arnold  |  January 26, 2024 5:20 PM

**This article has been updated to include reactions to the verdict.

A verdict has been reached in the defamation case between former President Trump and E. Jean Carroll. 

On Friday, federal judge Lewis A. Kaplan ordered Trump to pay Carroll $83 million in damages after he denied allegations he sexually assaulted her decades earlier. 

The judge also ordered Trump to pay her $65 million punitive damages.

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Carroll, who alleged that Trump raped her at the Bergdorf Goodman department store across from Trump Tower in Manhattan sometime in 1996, was seeking $12 million. Trump, the 2024 GOP frontrunner, has repeatedly and vehemently denied the allegation. His denial resulted in Carroll slapping Trump with a defamation lawsuit, claiming that his response caused harm to her reputation. 

The jury found Carroll was injured as a result of statements Trump made while in the White House in June 2019. The jury awarded Carroll $7.3 million in compensatory damages, other than the reputational repair program, and $11 million in damages for the reputational repair program. The jury found Trump’s statements were made to harm Carroll and awarded her $65 million in punitive damages. In total, the jury said Carroll should be paid $83.3 million. 

Earlier this week, Trump took the stand in which he defended his deposition, saying he has never threatened Carroll in his tweets and social media posts. 

“No," Trump said. "I was only defending myself from what I believe was a false allegation." 

Trump and his legal team have stood by their claims, asserting that Carroll’s allegations were false. The former president’s attorneys argued that Carroll was motivated by the idea she just wanted to sell copies of her book. 

After closing arguments on Friday, Trump took to his Truth Social account to say that Judge Kaplan "refuses to allow the Anderson Cooper Interview on CNN of E. Jean Carroll wherein Carroll says, ‘Rape is sexy,' and numerous other things that totally exonerate me,” referring to potential evidence being introduced during the trial. 

“Judge Kaplan is refusing me my Constitutional Right to Due Process, to defend myself against this False Accusation," Trump wrote. "This is a one-sided trial, where the other side is allowed everything, and we are allowed nothing. He is an extremely abusive individual, the likes of which few have seen before!"

Trump lawyer Alina Habba responded to a journalist who asked her if she regrets representing the former president. 

“No, I'm not having any second thoughts about representing President Trump. It is the proudest thing I could ever do. What I'm having second thoughts about is the license that I stand here with. Don't get it twisted. We are seeing a violation of our justice system. You are not allowed to be stripped of every defense that you have. I am proud to stand with President Trump because he showed up. He stood up, he took the stand, and he faced this judge. And you know what? I'll continue to do so with him,” Habba said.