NEW YORK — On Monday, a federal appeals court upheld a jury’s finding in a civil case, affirming that Donald Trump sexually abused columnist E. Jean Carroll in a department store dressing room during the mid-1990s.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals backed the Manhattan jury’s decision, which awarded Carroll $5 million in damages for defamation and sexual abuse.
During the 2023 trial, Carroll, a veteran magazine writer, detailed how a seemingly innocent interaction with Trump in the spring of 1996 turned violent when they entered the dressing room together.
Trump did not appear at the trial and has consistently denied the incident. Nevertheless, he provided brief testimony in a later defamation trial earlier this year, which resulted in an $83.3 million judgment against him. This second trial was initiated due to Trump’s statements in 2019 following Carroll’s public accusation in her memoir.
The appeals court panel, consisting of three judges, rejected arguments from Trump’s legal team that Judge Lewis A. Kaplan made several rulings that undermined the trial’s fairness. Among these rulings was the inclusion of testimony from two other women who alleged similar sexual abuse by Trump.
Additionally, the judge allowed the jury to view the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape, in which Trump boasted about being able to touch women without their consent due to his celebrity status.
The 2nd Circuit concluded, “We find that Mr. Trump has not demonstrated that the district court made any erroneous decisions regarding the claims raised. Further, he has not shown that any alleged errors significantly affected his rights, which would warrant a new trial.”
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In September, both Carroll, who is 81, and Trump, 78, attended the oral arguments at the 2nd Circuit.
Trump’s spokesperson, Steven Cheung, stated that Trump was elected with a strong mandate and that voters are demanding an end to what he referred to as the political manipulation of the justice system, labeling the case a “Democrat-funded Carroll Hoax” that will continue to be appealed.
Roberta Kaplan, Carroll’s attorney, expressed her satisfaction with the ruling, remarking, “Both E. Jean Carroll and I are pleased with today’s decision. We appreciate the Second Circuit’s thorough assessment of the arguments presented.”
In May 2023, the original jury found that Trump had sexually abused Carroll and defamed her through remarks made in October 2022, resulting in a $5 million award.
In January, a second jury granted Carroll an additional $83.3 million for Trump’s comments made while he was in office, which were ruled defamatory. This jury was instructed to accept the previous jury’s finding that Trump had sexually abused Carroll. An appeal of that verdict is still pending.
Throughout both trials, Carroll testified that Trump’s public statements had severely affected her life as a columnist for Elle magazine, resulting in threats against her and a fear of venturing out from her home in upstate New York.
During the second trial, Trump took the stand for less than three minutes and was not permitted to contest the findings of the May 2023 jury. However, he remained visibly engaged in the courtroom during the two-week trial, often heard muttering about the proceedings.
During the September appeal arguments, Trump’s attorney D. John Sauer argued that witness testimonies, including accounts of Carroll discussing the incident with others shortly after it occurred, were inappropriate due to perceived biases against Trump.
Sauer also contended that testimony from two women alleging similar misconduct by Trump in the 1970s and 2005 should have been excluded, as Trump has denied those claims as well.
The 2nd Circuit noted, “In each of the three incidents, Mr. Trump initiated a casual conversation with a woman he hardly knew, only to abruptly escalate to unwanted kissing and touching in semi-public settings. These actions are sufficiently similar to establish a pattern.”
Furthermore, the court indicated that the “Access Hollywood” tape served as direct corroboration of the women’s testimonies about the behavioral pattern they described.
The Associated Press typically refrains from disclosing the identities of individuals alleging sexual assault unless they have publicly identified themselves, as E. Jean Carroll has done.
