The Supreme Court refused Monday to take up President Trump’s appeal in his defamation fight with writer E. Jean Carroll, leaving a $5 million judgment against him intact and clearing one more legal hurdle for Carroll.
The justices turned down the case without comment.
Carroll, a former magazine columnist, accused Trump of sexually assaulting her in a New York City department store dressing room during the 1990s. She went public with the allegations in a 2019 memoir. Trump denied the claim from the Oval Office and on social media, calling her account a lie and a political hit job.
Carroll then sued him for defamation.
A jury in the first case ruled that Trump had sexually abused Carroll and defamed her, awarding her $5 million in damages. An appeals court upheld that verdict. On Monday, the Supreme Court declined to disturb it.
“Carroll waited more than 20 years to falsely accuse Donald Trump, who she politically opposes, until after he became the 45th President, when she could maximize political injury to him and profit for herself,” read a petition submitted by Trump’s attorney before the court’s refusal.
Trump has consistently denied wrongdoing and maintained the cases were driven by political animus.
Carroll brought a second defamation suit against Trump separately. A different jury sided with her again, this time awarding $83.3 million. That case remains in litigation.
President Trump blasted the Supreme Court’s decision. “Surprisingly, the Supreme Court declined to ‘review’ a Fake Case brought against me by a woman I never met (Decades old celebrity photo line, standing with her husband, does not count!),” he wrote on Truth Social. “I will continue the fight against this Weaponization and Lawfare Case against me, including the ridiculous claim of Defamation, with all of my power and strength. This Case is really against the United States of America, and all it stands for, and should never be allowed to happen to another President, or Candidate to be!”
“New York State created a Law, for an instant speck of time, going back many decades, in order to wrongfully ‘nab’ me,” he continued. “It was tailormade, and this Injustice cannot be allowed to stand! Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
