Supreme Court again declines Trump's appeal in Carroll $5 million case

The Supreme Court on Monday declined for the second time to consider President Trump's appeal of a jury's $5 million verdict finding him liable for sexual abuse and defamation of writer E. Jean Carroll. The unsigned order reiterated the court's position from June, when it first refused to hear the case.

Trump's lawyers had asked the justices to reconsider their previous refusal to hear his appeal. The court denied the petition along with several others. According to sources, it is unusual, although not unheard of, for the court to grant such reconsideration requests.

A civil federal jury in 2023 concluded that Trump should pay $5 million in damages to Carroll following a trial in New York. The jury, composed of six men and three women, deliberated for less than three hours before reaching a unanimous verdict. The case centered on allegations that Trump forcefully penetrated Carroll with his fingers in a department store changing room in the mid-1990s and then lied about the incident when she went public in 2019.

Carroll ultimately received $5.62 million this summer, a figure that included accrued interest accumulated since the case went to trial. Trump paid the judgment shortly after the court declined to take up his appeal in June.

Trump has forcefully denied Carroll's claims, calling them a "hoax" and questioning her account. His lawyers have contended that the trial was unfair.

Separately, Trump and the Justice Department are asking the high court to toss out a second Carroll verdict totaling $83 million. They argue that Trump is immune from being sued over comments he made about Carroll in 2019, when he was president. The Supreme Court has not yet acted on that appeal.