Warning: This article contains discussion of rape which some readers may find distressing.
President Donald Trump has requested that the Supreme Court reconsider its decision to stick with the 2023 verdict in E. Jean Carroll’s civil lawsuit, but there’s a long road ahead in the case yet.
The legal battle between Carroll and Trump has been ongoing following the first of two defamation lawsuits filed by journalist Carroll. In 2019, Carroll accused Trump of assaulting her in a dressing room inside a Manhattan department store in the mid-1990s – an allegation which the president has consistently denied.
While a federal jury rejected Carroll’s claim that Trump had raped her, the jury did find Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, consequently awarding Carroll $5 million.
Those funds were ultimately released on July 9 of this year, by which time interest had reached $5.6 million.
Trump’s lawyers attempted to freeze the transfer; however, it was unsuccessful, and they sought an emergency injunction to force her to repay the sum. And, according to documents filed on July 8, a petition for a rehearing was filed, which will now be distributed to the justices.
The jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse in Carroll’s lawsuit (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
According to the files, President Trump has petitioned the court to rehear their decision to deny his petition for ‘a writ of certiorari’, which, as defined by Cornell Law School, ‘orders a lower court to deliver its record in a case so that the higher court may review it’.
It continues: “Rehearing is warranted because President Trump will imminently file a petition for a writ of certiorari in Carroll v. Trump, No. 24-644 (2d Cir.) (“Carroll I”), which will present vital questions concerning Presidential immunity for official statements.”
What this means is that the case goes to the case distribution schedule to be sent to the Justices.
Donald Trump has described the case as a ‘witch hunt’ (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
According to SCOTUSblog, the court could respond to Trump’s request as part of the next set of summer orders – the orders released amid the court’s typical summer recess – which are set to be released on August 17.
Trump has denied ever having met Carroll and called the trial a ‘witch hunt’. Writing on Truth Social on June 30, Trump said he plans to ‘continue the fight against this Weaponization and Lawfare Case against me, including the ridiculous claim of Defamation, with all of my power and strength’.
If you’ve been affected by any of the issues in this article, you can contact The National Sexual Assault Hotline on 800.656.HOPE (4673), available 24/7. Or you can chat online via online.rainn.org
Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Alex Kent
