US Federal Appeals Court Upholds $5 Million Verdict Against Donald Trump For Sexual Abuse And Defamation

A federal appeals court on Monday (30 December) upheld a jury’s decision ordering United States (US) President-elect Donald Trump to pay $5 million in damages for sexually abusing and defaming writer E Jean Carroll.

The verdict stems from a civil trial held last year in New York, where a jury concluded that Trump sexually abused Carroll at a Manhattan department store in 1996. He was ordered to pay $2 million for sexual abuse and an additional $3 million for defaming Carroll, a former Elle magazine advice columnist.

Trump denied the allegations and appealed the decision, arguing that testimony from two other women who accused him of sexual assault should not have been allowed. However, the three-judge panel of the Second US Circuit Court of Appeals rejected his claims.

“We conclude that Mr Trump has not demonstrated that the district court erred in any of the challenged rulings,” the judges stated. “Further, he has not carried his burden to show that any claimed error or combination of claimed errors affected his substantial rights as required to warrant a new trial.”

Carroll was also awarded $83 million in a separate case against Trump, which is currently under appeal.

Trump spokesman Steven Cheung responded to the ruling, reiterating Trump’s intention to appeal. “The American People have re-elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate,” Cheung said.

“They demand an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and a swift dismissal of all of the Witch Hunts, including the Democrat-funded Carroll Hoax, which will continue to be appealed.”

Trump has faced numerous legal challenges. Two federal cases brought by special counsel Jack Smith—one alleging mishandling of classified documents and another related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election—were dismissed following Trump’s victory in the 5 November presidential election. The Justice Department cited its policy of not prosecuting a sitting president.

In May, Trump was convicted in New York of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels. Judge Juan Merchan recently denied Trump’s request to overturn the conviction but postponed sentencing indefinitely.