Trump appeals E. Jean Carroll verdict

Former President Trump has appealed the jury’s verdict that found him liable for sexually abusing and defaming E. Jean Carroll.

A nine-member jury on Tuesday ordered Trump to pay Carroll $5 million in damages after siding with the writer in her lawsuit.

Trump’s attorneys filed a notice of appeal with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday afternoon, the first formal step in contesting the verdict. His lawyers previously indicated they would do so.

Carroll accused Trump of raping her in the mid-1990s at a New York department store and later defaming her by denying her claims. 

The writer sued Trump in November by leveraging a New York law that went into effect the same day that provides survivors a one-year window to seek civil damages for sexual battery, even if the statute of limitations has passed.

The jury, sitting in federal court in Manhattan, found that Trump did not commit rape, but they agreed that he more likely than not committed sexual abuse, another way to prove sexual battery.

Carroll further sued Trump for defamation over a statement that he made in October 2022 that called her story a “complete con job” and that she “is not my type.”

Despite the jury’s finding that Trump’s denial amounted to defamation, the former president during a CNN town hall Wednesday night remained insistent that Carroll’s claims were made up.

“This woman, I don’t know her. I never met her. I have no idea who she is,” Trump said, calling her a “whack job.”

Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, told The New York Times they may file another suit based on those comments. 

“Everything’s on the table, obviously, and we have to give serious consideration to it,” Kaplan told the paper. “We have to weigh the various pros and cons and we’ll come to a decision in the next day or so, probably.”

Carroll also sued Trump for defamation in a separate lawsuit over his initial denials when the writer came forward in 2019. But that suit has been held up over a debate regarding Trump’s immunity because he made those statements while in office.