A Manhattan jury ordered former president Donald J. Trump to pay $83.3 million to writer E. Jean Carroll for defaming her in 2019. Ms. Carroll had accused Trump of raping her decades ago, and he continued to attack her on social media, at news conferences and even during the trial. The jury awarded Ms. Carroll $65 million in punitive damages, finding that Trump had acted with malice. At one point during the recent trial, Trump made over 40 derisive posts about Ms. Carroll on his Truth Social website. Trump left the courtroom before the dollar figures were read aloud.
In her statement, Carroll called the verdict “a great victory for every woman who stands up when she’s been knocked down and a huge defeat for every bully who has tried to keep a woman down,” and thanked her lawyers. Trump said the verdict was “absolutely ridiculous” but notably did not attack Carroll in the aftermath of the decision.
The judge presiding over the case told reporters, “We did not win today, but we will win.” Ms. Carroll’s lead lawyer, Roberta A. Kaplan, said the verdict “proves that the law applies to everyone in our country, even the rich, even the famous, even former presidents.” The verdict came after Trump attended nearly every day of the latest trial and testified briefly this week.
Notably, Trump’s legal troubles are ongoing. He is awaiting the outcome of a civil fraud trial brought by New York’s attorney general and is contending with four criminal indictments, at least one of which is expected to go to trial before the November election. Despite the significant verdict against him, Trump completed an Iowa and New Hampshire sweep in the first two presidential nominating states of 2024 and cemented himself as the likely Republican nominee.
During the trial, Carroll testified that Trump’s repeated taunts and lashing out had mobilized many of his supporters, leading to an onslaught of attacks on social media and in her email inbox that frightened her and “shattered” her reputation as a well-regarded advice columnist for Elle magazine. The trial was marked by repeated clashes between Trump’s lawyers and the judge presiding over the case. The former president’s testimony was notable for how little he said. In the end, Ms. Kaplan asked the jury to award her client enough money to help Ms. Carroll repair her reputation and compensate her for the emotional harm Trump’s attacks had inflicted. Though Trump scoffed, muttered, and shook his head during parts of the closing arguments, he left the courtroom without saying anything and returned later when his lawyer began her summation.