Trump loses appeal of $5M defamation verdict
By: Aysha Bagchi
and Bart Jansen
USA Today
..... A New York federal appeals court on Monday [12/30/2024] upheld a jury's verdict that President-elect Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed columnist E. Jean Carroll and owes her $5 million for dong so.
.....
"We conclude that Mr. Trump has not demonstrated that the district court erred in any of the challenged rulings," wrote the appeals court judges. "Further, he has not carried his burden to show that any claimed error or combination of claimed errors affected his substantial rights as required to warrant a new trial.
..... Roberta Kaplan, a lawyer for Carroll, thanked the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals "for its careful consideration of the arguments.
..... "Both E. Jean Carroll and I are gratified by today's [12/30/2024] decision," Kaplan said in a statement.
.....
Steven Cheung, a Trump spokesperson, said the American people have reelected Trump and demand a swift dismissal of litigation including Carroll's lawsuit. Trump will continue to appeal the case, Cheung said.
..... Carroll brought the lawsuit against the former president, claiming he assaulted her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s and then hurt her reputation by attacking her allegations as a "con job" in 2022. Trump has strongly denied her claims and disputed a Manhattan civil jury's unanimous verdict.
.....
In his appeal, Trump's lawyer attacked trial Judge Lewis Kaplan's decision to allow two other women to testify that Trump assaulted them, too.
..... One of the two said Trump pushed her against a wall and forcibly kissed her as she was conducting a magazine interview in the mid-2000s. the other woman described him grabbing her breasts and trying to kiss her while reaching up her skirt on an airplane in that late 1970s.
..... The lawyers also said the testimony form the other women alleging they were assaulted by Trump demonstrated his propensity to assault women "in markedly similar ways across time."
..... Trump, who has denied the claims said he was entitled to a new trial.
..... But Appeals Court Judges Denny Chin, Susan Carney and Myrna Perez disagreed. Chin and Careny were appointed by former President Barack Obama and Perez was appointed by President Joe Biden.
..... The appeals court rule that such evidence is usually excluded but that acceptable purpose for allowing it included showing "movie, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, absence of mistake, or lack of accident."
..... The Trump team also argued the jury shouldn't have been allowed to hear Trump saying on an "Access Hollywood" recording that he kisses women without waiting for them to give consent and that stars can grab women's genitals.
..... The $5 million verdict is just the tip of the iceberg in Trump's legal troubles with Carroll. A
separate federal jury awarded Carroll another $83.3 million for statements Trump made in 219, soon after Carroll went public with her allegations. At that time, Trump said "people should pay dearly for such false accusations." Trump's appeal of that larger verdict is ongoing.