On Tuesday, a federal jury in Manhattan reached an unprecedented decision against former President Donald Trump, ruling he was liable for sexually assaulting writer E. Jean Carroll in 1996 and subsequently defaming her through his public denials.
The jury, made up of six men and three women, did not find Trump liable for rape, as Carroll alleged.
Carroll was awarded $5 million in damages as a result of the jury’s verdict.
During the trial, the 79-year-old testified that Trump, 76, raped her in a Manhattan Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room. In her testimony, she also said that he harmed her reputation by calling her claims a “complete con job,” “a hoax” and “a lie” in posts on his Truth Social platform in October 2022.
Trump, who was absent from the courtroom throughout the trial, took to social media following the verdict, calling it a “disgrace” and saying, “I have absolutely no idea who this woman is.”
Steven Cheung, Trump’s spokesman, says the 2024 presidential hopeful plans to appeal.
