U.S. Supreme Court refuses to dismiss ruling against Trump in E. Jean Carroll case

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear Donald Trump's appeal seeking to overturn a jury's finding that he sexually assaulted writer E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s. The jury also found that Trump defamed Carroll when he denied the allegations.

Trump was ordered to pay Carroll $5 million in damages. His legal team had argued that the evidence used in the case, including testimony from two other women who accused Trump of sexual abuse, was "highly inflammatory." They contended that the judge violated federal rules and distracted from the president's duties, even though the verdict came before his current term.

Trump's lawyers reacted strongly to the Supreme Court's decision, stating, "The American people stand with President Trump in demanding an immediate end to all witch hunts including the Carroll-scam, a travesty funded by Democrats." They added that Trump "will continue to triumph in the fight against the liberal judicial war, as he continues to focus on his mission of Making America Great Again."

Carroll, a former TV host and advice columnist, testified that Trump attacked her in a Bergdorf Goodman store dressing room in 1996. A separate defamation lawsuit resulted in a $83.3 million judgment against Trump. Additionally, Trump lost a civil fraud case in New York in 2024, facing a $500 million penalty, though an appeals court later overturned the penalty while upholding the guilty verdict.