Supreme Court declines to review Trump's appeal in Carroll sexual abuse case

Why it matters locally: The legal proceedings against former President Trump related to journalist E. Jean Carroll originated in federal court in New York, and the case has been closely watched by legal professionals and the public in the state due to its high-profile nature.

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The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear President Donald Trump's appeal challenging a $5 million jury verdict entered against him in journalist E. Jean Carroll's sexual abuse and defamation case. Trump petitioned the justices in November seeking review of the verdict. The Supreme Court conference considered his petition for the first time on June 25, after scheduling delays pushed back the decision repeatedly since February. Carroll sued Trump in federal court in New York in 2022, alleging he sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan department store dressing room in 1996 and then defamed her in 2022 when she made her allegations public. A jury found in her favor and awarded her $5 million in damages. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit upheld the verdict. Trump's appeal focused on the evidence the jury heard. He argued that Carroll's lawyers improperly introduced testimony from other women who claimed Trump assaulted them, as well as a 2005 "Access Hollywood" recording in which Trump made lewd comments about women. He sought to exclude these materials from consideration. Carroll's legal team countered in their response to the petition that even if the jury should not have seen that evidence, her remaining case was sufficiently strong to reach the same verdict. They asked the justices to reject his appeal. The Supreme Court granted that request without noting any justice's dissent from the decision to decline review. Trump faces another petition pending before the Supreme Court in a separate defamation case involving Carroll. The 2nd Circuit upheld an $83 million verdict in that case as well.