US supreme court rejects Trump’s bid to appeal $5m E Jean Carroll verdict

Key Points:

• The US Supreme Court declined Donald Trump’s request to review a New York jury’s 2023 verdict that found him liable for sexually abusing writer E Jean Carroll and defaming her, leaving intact the $5 million civil judgment against him.
• The decision follows a 2024 ruling by a three-judge panel at the Second US Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld the jury's verdict and rejected Trump’s claims that the trial was unfair.
• Trump, who denies the allegations, criticized the Supreme Court's refusal to review the case on social media, while Carroll’s attorney stated the decision affirms the jury’s unanimous verdict and ends Trump’s attempts to avoid accountability.
• Carroll initially filed the lawsuit after publishing a memoir excerpt in 2019 alleging Trump raped her in the 1990s, which he has consistently denied; she also won a separate $83.3 million defamation judgment against Trump in 2024, which is currently under appeal.
• Trump’s legal team is appealing the defamation ruling and plans to request Supreme Court review, arguing for “absolute immunity” for statements made by Trump while president.