The United States Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from President Donald Trump in the civil case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, effectively upholding a jury’s finding that he sexually abused and defamed her, according to BBC News.
The decision, announced without explanation as is customary, ends Trump’s final attempt to overturn the 2023 verdict. A New York jury had awarded Carroll $5 million in damages after concluding that Trump assaulted her in a Manhattan department store in the mid-1990s and later defamed her by dismissing the claim as a hoax.
Trump has consistently denied the allegations, arguing that the trial was unfair. His legal team claimed the judge allowed evidence that prejudiced the jury, including the 2005 “Access Hollywood” recording in which Trump spoke about groping and kissing women. However, a federal appeals court upheld the verdict last year and ruled that a new trial was not necessary.
Carroll, now 81 and a former magazine columnist, welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision through her lawyer, Roberta Kaplan. She said the ruling affirms the jury’s unanimous conclusion and marks the end of Trump’s repeated attempts to avoid accountability.
In response, Trump criticized the case in a post on his Truth Social platform, calling it a politically motivated attack and vowing to continue fighting what he described as “lawfare.” He argued that the legal framework used in the case was designed specifically to target him and warned of broader implications for future political figures.
The case has also led to further legal consequences for Trump. In a separate defamation ruling, another jury ordered him to pay Carroll $83 million for statements that damaged her reputation after the initial verdict. That decision was also upheld on appeal.
While the jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, it did not uphold Carroll’s claim of rape under New York law, which has a narrower legal definition.
With the Supreme Court’s refusal to intervene, the original judgment now stands, closing a significant chapter in one of the most closely watched civil cases involving a sitting U.S. president.
