US judge orders release of $5.8m Trump owes E Jean Carroll after court loss

US Judge Orders Release of $5.8m Trump Owes E Jean Carroll After Court Loss

A federal judge ordered July 8 that writer E. Jean Carroll can collect $5.8 million held in a court-monitored escrow account following a jury's finding that President Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed her. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan comes after the U.S. Supreme Court declined June 29 to review Trump's appeal of the 2023 civil verdict.

The funds, which consist of an initial $5 million jury award plus accrued interest, were deposited by Trump into the court's registry investment system (Cris) some six weeks after the original victory. While Trump's legal team claimed the balance is $6.4 million, Judge Kaplan directed the clerk to disburse the principal judgment of $5,000,000.00 and the post-judgment interest.

Trump's attorneys filed an appeal to stop the payment less than an hour after the order was issued. They have asked the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for an immediate temporary pause, arguing that if the money is released and the Supreme Court later decides to rehear the case, Trump would suffer an unrecoverable loss.

The legal dispute stems from a 1996 encounter in the dressing room of a luxury Manhattan department store. Carroll, now 82 and a former advice columnist, testified that a flirtatious chance meeting turned violent. Trump denied the allegations, stating he never knew Carroll and calling the claims a hoax and a con job to sell books. In an interview, Trump stated she’s not my type.

Carroll's ability to sue for the attack was made possible after New York passed the Adult Survivors Act, which opened a one-year window for victims of sexual violence to file lawsuits regardless of previous statutes of limitations. She also sued for defamation after Trump denied the allegations in 2019 following a memoir she wrote.

The legal battle has branched into two distinct judgments:

• The 2023 Judgment: A jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, awarding $5 million.
• The 2024 Judgment: A separate Manhattan jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million for defamatory statements Trump made as president.

For the second trial, Judge Kaplan required the jury to accept the findings of the first jury and determine only the amount of damages owed for Trump's comments. Trump's lawyers complained this barred the defense from arguing the encounter never happened.

Trump is currently appealing the $83.3 million award. His lawyers argue that both cases are intertwined and rely on official presidential statements. They contend that a 2024 Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity should protect him from these lawsuits. In a court filing, Trump's lawyers stated official Presidential acts may not be used as evidence to impose liability for other conduct.

In a separate development, the Justice Department has attempted to intervene in the $83.3 million case. Top officials claimed there is good cause to pause the case so the administration can argue Trump's immunity claims on his behalf, effectively attempting to replace Trump with the U.S. Government as the defendant.

Circuit Judge Denny Chin previously wrote that Trump had spent years suggesting Carroll lied for financial and political gain, which resulted in Carroll being harassed and humiliated, subjected to death threats, and feared for her physical safety. Chin noted that Trump showed no remorse, even claiming he would continue to defame Carroll a thousand times.

Trump has dismissed the proceedings as Weaponization and Lawfare, writing on Truth Social June 30 that the case is really against the United States of America.

While Trump's team argues that a petition for rehearing at the Supreme Court is a serious matter, attorney Roberta Kaplan, representing Carroll, stated June 30 that this is the end of the line. Trump's lawyers indicated he could still appeal the $83 million judgment by July 28.