Supreme Court Declines Trump Appeal of E. Jean Carroll Verdict

Why it matters locally: The Supreme Court's decision to decline this appeal solidifies a $5 million judgment from a Manhattan jury against Donald Trump, directly impacting a case originating and tried in New York.

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The Supreme Court declined to hear Donald Trump's appeal of a $5 million verdict in the E. Jean Carroll case, effectively ending the former president's legal challenge to the judgment. Trump sought to overturn a verdict that a Manhattan jury delivered in January 2024. The jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation after Carroll, a former magazine columnist, sued him over statements he made denying her account of a sexual assault that allegedly occurred in the 1990s at a Manhattan department store. The Court rejected Trump's petition without providing written explanation, a common practice when justices decline cases. No justice filed a dissenting opinion, which would have indicated disagreement with the decision to let the lower court ruling stand. The $5 million award compensated Carroll for damages related to Trump's public statements denying the assault allegation and calling her account false. The jury in the New York case had found that Trump defamed Carroll through those statements. This marks the latest development in a series of legal proceedings involving Carroll and Trump. She filed a separate defamation lawsuit that resulted in a $83.3 million judgment against Trump in January 2024, a verdict he continues to appeal. Trump's legal team did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Supreme Court's rejection means the $5 million judgment now stands as final, barring any other legal action from Trump's lawyers.