(FixThisNation.com) – A federal jury has mandated that former President Donald Trump compensate E. Jean Carroll, a well-known advice columnist, with $83.3 million for defamation. This decision came after Trump refuted Carroll’s claims from 2019 that he had sexually assaulted her many years prior.
This verdict is the second instance where Carroll has successfully claimed damages from Trump, adding to a previous $5 million judgment for sexual abuse and defamation related to a different remark.
The timing of Carroll’s latest trial coincided with the initial stages of the primary elections, occurring right after Trump’s significant victory in the Iowa caucuses and extending beyond the New Hampshire primary, solidifying Trump’s lead in the Republican race.
Trump, opting to attend the trial over campaign events, was present for the duration of the proceedings except for one day, which he missed due to a family funeral. His attendance was not mandatory.
Carroll delivered extensive testimony during the trial, and Trump appeared briefly as the last witness. The trial experienced a brief hiatus due to pandemic-related concerns raised by the judge.
After the closing statements, the jury, comprising two women and seven men from New York, deliberated for three hours before reaching a unanimous decision. They awarded Carroll $11 million for reputational damage repair, $7.3 million in other compensatory damages, and $65 million in punitive damages.
Trump had left the courthouse shortly before the verdict was announced and was not present when the decision was made. Carroll, visibly pleased with the outcome, celebrated with her legal team following the verdict.
Despite the verdict, Trump has maintained that Carroll’s accusations were fabricated to promote her book. The trial was presided over by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, appointed by former President Clinton, who had already determined that Trump’s denials constituted defamation, leaving the jury to decide on the damages.
This decision builds on a previous verdict that found Trump guilty of sexually abusing Carroll in the mid-1990s, rendering his denials defamatory by default, as per Kaplan’s earlier ruling.
The case centered on statements Trump made to reporters and during a public appearance in 2019 when Carroll first made her allegations public.
Carroll shared during her testimony the profound impact the incident had on her life. Trump’s brief testimony was heavily restricted due to the pre-established findings of the case.
Throughout the trial, the jury was also exposed to Trump’s recent derogatory remarks about Carroll, including during a deposition and a press conference shortly after one of the trial sessions.
The trial featured various testimonies, including from a marketing professor who assessed the damages, one of Carroll’s close friends, and the former editor-in-chief of Elle magazine, where Carroll had her long-standing advice column.
This lawsuit is among several legal challenges Trump faces as he aims for a presidential comeback, including a civil fraud case that could significantly affect his business ventures and multiple criminal indictments totaling 91 charges.
Trump immediately announced his intention to appeal the verdict, as he had with the previous trial, expressing strong disagreement with the outcomes on Truth Social.
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