New York journalist and author E Jean Carroll has formally asked a Manhattan federal judge to order former US President Donald Trump to pay $5 million in damages awarded by a jury that found him liable for sexually abusing and defaming her. This legal move follows the US Supreme Court's recent decision to decline Trump's appeal of the civil case verdict.

Carroll, now 82, accused Trump of sexually assaulting her in the mid-1990s in a dressing room at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan. She also alleged that Trump defamed her in a 2022 post on Truth Social denying her claims.

The jury verdict was reached in May 2023 during a trial Trump did not attend. Since then, the amount owed to Carroll has grown to nearly $5.8 million with interest. Carroll's legal team, including Roberta Kaplan, Brandon Trice, and Maximilian T Crema, contend that Trump has repeatedly sought to delay payment and continues to make defamatory remarks while attempting to challenge the verdict.

A three-judge panel at the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the jury's verdict in 2024, rejecting Trump's claims that the trial was unfair. On July 1, Judge Lewis Kaplan agreed that Carroll could pursue the payment on an expedited basis and set a deadline for Trump's legal team to respond by July 7.

Trump responded to the Supreme Court's refusal to hear the appeal by calling the case a "Fake Case" on Truth Social. Meanwhile, Trump is also appealing an $83 million defamation compensation awarded to Carroll from a separate 2024 trial.

Carroll's lawyers have emphasized that after four years of litigation across multiple court levels, it is time for the case to conclude and for Trump to fulfill the payment obligation.

Sources