NEW YORK — A federal jury ordered former President Trump to pay $83.3 million for defaming E. Jean Carroll when Trump in 2019 denied the longtime advice columnist’s accusation that he sexually assaulted her decades earlier.
It marks the second time Carroll has won damages from Trump at trial, with the new total adding to a $5 million verdict last year finding Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll and defaming her over a separate comment.
Carroll’s latest trial became intertwined with the heat of the early primary contests, beginning the day after Trump’s historic win in the Iowa caucuses and proceeding past the New Hampshire primary, when Trump further cemented his status as the indisputable Republican front-runner.
Trump often picked the courtroom over the campaign trail, sitting in for all but one day of the trial, when he instead attended his mother-in-law’s funeral. He was not required to attend any of the proceedings.
During the whirlwind trial, Carroll testified at length and Trump briefly took the stand as the final witness. The judge also issued a multi-day delay in the middle of the trial after raising COVID-19 concerns.