A jury has ruled that Former President Donald Trump committed battery on E. Jean Carroll in 1996 and later defamed her.
Carroll has claimed that Trump raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in New York City.
“I’m here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote about it, he said it didn’t happen,” Carroll testified during the nearly two-week-long civil trial in federal court. “He lied and shattered my reputation, and I’m here to try and get my life back.”
Trump did not testify or call any witnesses in the case.
The jury ruled that Trump did not rape Carroll but that he is liable for sexual abuse. He has now been ordered to pay her $5 million in damages in the civil case. There are no criminal charges.
Carroll first went public with the allegations in 2019 while promoting her book. Trump has maintained that he is innocent and that she is not his “type.” He has also accused her of fabricating the story to sell copies of her book.
Carroll maintained that she was inspired to come forward because of the #MeToo movement.
In November, Carroll filed her complaint using a new New York law that allows sexual assault victims a one-year window to file lawsuits even if the statute of limitations has expired. She filed it the same day that the law went into effect.
Carroll also claimed that he defamed her by calling her a “complete con job” in an October 2022 interview.
After the verdict was announced, Trump called it a “disgrace” and claimed that he didn’t know her in a post on Truth Social after the verdict was announced.
“I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHO THIS WOMAN IS. THIS VERDICT IS A DISGRACE – A CONTINUATION OF THE GREATEST WITCH HUNT OF ALL TIME!” Trump wrote.
Trump is currently the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.
