Donald Trump to pay $83.3 million for defamation to E. Jean Carroll

Donald Trump to pay $83.3 million for defamation to E. Jean Carroll

A New York jury has decided that Donald Trump should pay USD 83.3 million to discredit columnist E. Jean Carroll as the President of the United States in 2019.

The fine in civil trials is made up of $18.3m for compensatory damages and $65m in punitive damages.

Mr. Trump was found to have defamed Ms. Carroll in a previous civil case and sexually assaulted her in the 1990s.

He vowed to appeal the latest verdict, calling the case a victim and the verdict "absolutely ridiculous."

In the latest trial, the jury only needed to decide how much compensation, if any, should be given to Ms. Carroll.

Compensatory damages are attributable to the damage that the jury found that his comments had done to his reputation and emotional well-being.

Defamation defeats double-edged sword for Trump

The panel also had to come up with punitive penalties aimed at preventing Mr. Trump from continuing to speak out against him.

It took the jury of seven men and two women less than three hours to deliver the verdict on Friday afternoon.

He is likely to be the Republican presidential nominee in November and faces four criminal charges out of a total of 91 criminal cases.

He is the first president in U.S. history to be charged with a crime but has pleaded not guilty or denied all charges.

"This is a huge victory for every woman who stands up when she's knocked down, and a huge defeat for every bully who has tried to put a woman down," Ms. Carroll said in a statement after the jury's verdict on Friday.

"Today's ruling proves that the law applies to everyone in our country, including the rich, even famous, even former presidents," his attorney Robbie Kaplan said in a statement.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, or even the one he ever met with Ms. Carroll, including on Friday morning.

But after the verdict he refrained from attacking him directly when he criticized the outcome of the case in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.

"I vehemently disagree with both decisions," he wrote, "and would appeal to this entire Biden-directed witch hunt centered on me and the Republican Party."

"Our legal system is out of control, and is being used as a political weapon. They have taken away all the First Amendment rights. This is not America!

A civil trial last year found that Trump sexually assaulted a magazine columnist Carroll in the dressing room of the Bergdorf Goodman department store in the 1990s.

That jury found him liable for defamation for telling his allegations to be false – and he was ordered to pay nearly $5m in damages.

The case, which ended Friday, focused on various derogatory comments by Mr. Trump in 2019.

Trump abruptly left the courtroom with Secret Service protection and was not present to hear the verdict.

His departure came just moments after Judge Kaplan threatened to jail Mr. Trump's lawyer, Alina Habba, after he told her to remain silent.

"You're on the verge of spending some time in the lockup. Now sit down," he told Ms. Habba.

Who is Trump's trial lawyer Alina Habba?

The judge had previously threatened to evict Mr. Trump because he called the case a "con job" and about being a "victim" in court. Before the verdict was read, the judge warned: "We will have no explosion."

Earlier during final arguments on Friday, a lawyer for Ms Carroll told the court that her reputation had been severely damaged by comments by the former president, in which she has denied sexual assault.

Also Read: Jury orders Trump to pay $83 million for defaming columnist E. Jean Carroll

"This case is also about punishing Donald Trump ... This trial is about stopping him once and for all," she said.

Ms Carroll's lawyers previously told the court that Mr. Trump's statements sparked death threats, rape threats and a torrent of online vitriol toward her.

Mr. Trump's lawyer had argued that he should not pay Ms. Carroll any more damages because his claims "have more holes than Swiss cheese".

Ms. Habba said her client was not convicted for the threats she received on Ms. Carroll.

Earlier in the trial, Judge Lewis Kaplan (no relation to the plaintiffs' attorney) advised jurors not to use their real names with each other due to the sensitive nature of the case.

As it ended, he advised them that they were free to discuss their experience. But he said that in his opinion he should not tell anyone that he has acted on the case.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly claimed that the various legal cases he faces are being conducted by aides of U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat.

As the Republican Party's White House frontrunner, Mr. Trump is set for a rematch against Mr. Biden in the November 2024 general election.