Donald Trump lost another legal battle after a Manhattan judge threw out his defamation claim on Monday.
The counterclaim was in relation to comments made on CNN by writer E. Jean Carroll the day after she won a $5 million civil case against Trump for defamation and abuse.
When asked by the broadcaster about the jury’s findings and whether he had raped her, Carroll replied: “Oh yes, he did; oh yes, he did.”
Trump objected to the comments, along with Carroll’s suggestion that she told his lawyer “he did it and you know it” shortly after the verdict was announced.
He subsequently filed a counterclaim to a second defamation lawsuit by Carroll, 79, who is seeking at least $10 million in damages.
Why Was Donald Trump’s Claim Dismissed?
Defamation is a civil dispute where actions or comments by one party damage or tarnish the reputation of another.
Branding someone as an abuser, even if the accuser believes it to be true, can be seen as defamatory in the absence of clear-cut evidence.
District Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed Trump’s defamation claim on the basis that Carroll’s comments were at least “substantially true,” adding the former president failed to show they had been made maliciously. Kaplan had earlier found evidence that Trump “deliberately and forcibly” inserted his fingers into Carroll’s ******, resulting in immediate distress and enduring emotional and psychological suffering.
“Mr. Trump ‘raped’ her, albeit digitally rather than with his *****,” Kaplan wrote on Monday, referencing the previous verdict. “Thus, it establishes against him the substantial truth of Ms. Carroll’s ‘rape’ accusations.” Kaplan also dismissed some of Trump’s defenses in relation to “absolute presidential immunity” as well as a claim that Carroll was not eligible for punitive damages.
What Was The Reaction?
Trump’s attorneys have already pledged to appeal the decision, branding the decision as “flawed.” “We strongly disagree with the flawed decision and will be filing an appeal shortly,” said Alina Habba, a lawyer for the former president.
On the contrary, Carroll’s legal team have praised the verdict, with Roberta Kaplan (who bears no relation to the judge) stating a further case against Trump “shouldn’t take very long to complete.”
The ever-ongoing legal case began when Trump denied he had raped Carroll in a Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan in the mid-1990s. He alleged he did not know her in June 2019, adding that she was not his “type” and was making the accusations to heighten sales of her memoir.
The remarks prompted Carroll to sue for defamation, not helped by follow-up comments made by the former president on Truth Social, where he called the incident a “Hoax and a lie” and a “complete Scam.”
Carroll altered her lawsuit after Trump labelled her “a whack job” in a CNN town hall after the initial verdict.
The trial is scheduled for January 15, 2024.
Shay Bottomley is a British journalist based in Canada. He has written for the Western Standard, Maidenhead Advertiser, Slough Express, Windsor Express, Berkshire Live and Southend Echo, and has covered notable events including the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
