A federal appeals court has upheld the $83.3 million defamation judgment against Donald Trump in E. Jean Carroll’s case, rejecting his immunity claim.
A federal appeals court in New York on Monday upheld the $83.3 million judgment against former U.S. President Donald Trump for defaming writer E. Jean Carroll in 2019.
Trump had argued he was entitled to presidential immunity when he denied sexually abusing Carroll in the 1990s and called her a liar. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected that claim, stating: “Trump has failed to identify any grounds that would warrant reconsidering our prior holding on presidential immunity.”
The court said the $18.3 million in compensatory damages and $65 million in punitive damages were “fair and reasonable,” adding Trump acted with “reckless disregard for the truth.”
The opinion noted Carroll faced thousands of online attacks, including death threats, after Trump’s statements reached up to 104 million people.
In 2023, a separate jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, awarding Carroll $5 million in damages.