Federal judge orders Trump to pay Carroll
By: Bart Jansen
USA Today
..... Two legal decisions went against President Donald Trump on July 8. [2026]
.....
In New York, a federal judge ordered that columnist E. Jan Carroll be paid $5.8 million form a judgment against Trump.
..... U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said the money hat has accumulated in a court investment account must go to Carroll despite Trump's opposition.
..... However,
Trump immediately appealed that ruling, The president contends that he still has appeals that could protect him from that case and another $83 million judgment that Carroll own against him.
..... It was the latest wrinkle in Carroll's attempt to punish Trump for a disputed episode form the 1990s, when she alleged that Trump sexually assaulted her at a New York City department store.
..... The smaller judgment resulted from a jury finding Trump liable for sexual abuse against Carroll. the larger judgment results from a separate jury finding trump defamed Carroll when he denied her allegations.
..... Trump argues that both cases are intertwined and rely on official presidential statements. The Supreme Court ruled in 2024 that presidents are immune from prosecution for most official acts. Trump contends that should protect him from Carroll's lawsuit, too.
..... On June 29, [2026] the Supreme Court declined to hear Trump's appeal of the $5.8 million case. Carroll then asked Kaplan to order Trump to pay her.
..... But in Trump's reply July 7, [2026] he said he could still appeal the $83 million judgment by July 28. [2026] He's also asked the Supreme Court to reconsider the $5.8 million case.
..... Trump contends that his statements as president were key to the smaller judgment and were an "indispensable" part of the larger measurement.
..... Before Kaplan's latest ruling, Trump said if the judge orders him to pay Carroll, he is "likely to never recover the funds."
.....
Meanwhile, in Washington, DC, a federal appeals panel ruled unanimously July 8 [2026] that Trump's name will remain off the Kennedy Center while he continues to litigate the removal.
..... Trump chairs the arts center's board and appointed many of tis members, who added his name to the center's facade and website. that move prompted a lawsuit from Representative Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio a board member who argued that the name of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts was fixed in the 1964 stature that cerated it.
.... On May 29, [2026] District Judge
Christopher Cooper ordered Trump's name removed. A tarp and scaffolding had been covering the facade where Trump's name has been.
..... Trump asked to restore his name while he appeal Cooper's decision. But Judges Patricia Millett, Robert Wilkins and Gregory Katsas at the DC Circuit Court of Appeals rejected his request because his name had already been removed.
..... "We now deny Appellants' motion for a stay pending appeal because they have failed to show how they will be irreparably injured absent a stay," the unsigned opinion said.
..... Beatty said the appeals decision confirmed that Trump's attempt to rename the Kennedy Center was "unlawful."