One day after former president Donald J. Trump was found liable for sexual battery and defamation in a civil suit filed by E. Jean Carroll, Trump has filed his intent to appeal the verdict.
E. Jean Carroll is a former Elle Magazine columnist who alleges that the former president sexually abused her in the 90s, in the fitting room of a Bergdorf Goodman store; and then defamed her via a Truth Social post in 2022, in response to her published account of the incident in 2019. The suit is perhaps the most high profile suit to happen in New York since a new law was put in place, which granted survivors of sexual abuse the right to sue the perpetrator despite the statute of limitations.
Trump was ordered to pay $5 million dollars. He is still currently eligible to run for the presidency.
Trump continued to deny the allegation throughout Wednesday, with a video on Truth Social (his own social media platform) calling the verdict a disgrace and a “sham”. He also echoed this language in a CNN Town Hall that night, continuing to allege that Carroll went through with the suit as a political stunt, and that he doesn’t know her.
Trump’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, seemed to lightly echo these sentiments in his closing statement earlier this week, telling the jury to look beyond the divisive nature of the former president and make sure their emotions or political beliefs are not part of their decision making process.
People have very strong feelings about Donald Trump. That’s obvious. There’s a time and a secret place to do that: it’s called a ballot box during an election.”
Answering a question at Wednesday night’s CNN Town Hall as to if he thought the suit would harm the support of his female voter base, Trump dismissed the possibility, with the audience largely seeming to support him in this claim.
