By — Michael R. Sisak, Associated Press Michael R. Sisak, Associated Press By — Larry Neumeister, Associated Press Larry Neumeister, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/judge-orders-e-jean-carroll-be-paid-5-8m-in-trump-sex-abuse-and-defamation-case Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Judge orders E. Jean Carroll be paid $5.8M in Trump sex abuse and defamation case Politics Jul 8, 2026 4:31 PM EDT NEW YORK (AP) — The writer E. Jean Carroll can collect $5.8 million held in escrow since a jury found that President Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed her, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. Trump's lawyers immediately appealed to stop the payment. The president has already deposited the money in an account. The U.S. Supreme Court recently let the 2023 civil verdict stand, clearing the way for Judge Lewis A. Kaplan to release the money. The initial $5 million award has grown with interest. READ MORE: E. Jean Carroll calls for Trump to pay her $5.8M after Supreme Court rejects his appeal The jury found Trump attacked Carroll in 1996 in the dressing room of a luxury Manhattan department store, and defamed her after she described it publicly in a 2019 memoir, during his first term as president. Trump called her allegations false and said " she's not my type " in an interview. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. Enter your email address Subscribe Form error message goes here. Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm. Trump's attorneys said Wednesday they would continue to appeal, and accused his political opponents of using the legal system against him. They asked the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to stop the payment. Carroll's lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The jury had reached its verdict — in a trial that Trump did not attend — after Carroll testified that their flirtatious and friendly chance encounter at the department store turned violent. Trump insisted he never knew Carroll, now 82, a former advice columnist. He accused her of trying to sell books at his expense and of having political motives. READ MORE: Supreme Court rejects Trump's push to toss $5 million verdict in E. Jean Carroll sexual abuse case Carroll sued Trump after New York changed its laws to give sexual abuse survivors a fresh chance to sue over attacks that happened in the distant past. Trump is also appealing $83 million in defamation compensation granted to Carroll by a separate Manhattan jury after a 2024 trial where Trump briefly testified. At that trial, Kaplan required the jury to accept the findings of the previous jury and only determine how much money, if any, Trump owed Carroll for comments he made about her while he was president. Trump's lawyers complained that the judge, in setting rules for the damages trial, had barred Trump and his defense team from telling the jury that the encounter with Carroll never happened. READ MORE: AP report: Justice Department opens investigation into E. Jean Carroll, who successfully sued Trump for sexual abuse and defamation When the 2nd Circuit declined to let all of its judges rehear an appeal of the $83 million award, Circuit Judge Denny Chin wrote that Trump had said multiple times over many years that Carroll lied for political and financial gain and had suggested she was too unattractive for Trump to have sexually assaulted her. "As a result of Trump's statements, Carroll was harassed and humiliated, subjected to death threats, and feared for her physical safety for years," Chin said. "And Trump showed no remorse, continuing his attacks against Carroll during and after two federal trials, and even proclaiming two days into the Carroll I trial that he would continue to defame her 'a thousand times.'" A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. Donate now By — Michael R. Sisak, Associated Press Michael R. Sisak, Associated Press By — Larry Neumeister, Associated Press Larry Neumeister, Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — The writer E. Jean Carroll can collect $5.8 million held in escrow since a jury found that President Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed her, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. Trump's lawyers immediately appealed to stop the payment. The president has already deposited the money in an account. The U.S. Supreme Court recently let the 2023 civil verdict stand, clearing the way for Judge Lewis A. Kaplan to release the money. The initial $5 million award has grown with interest. READ MORE: E. Jean Carroll calls for Trump to pay her $5.8M after Supreme Court rejects his appeal The jury found Trump attacked Carroll in 1996 in the dressing room of a luxury Manhattan department store, and defamed her after she described it publicly in a 2019 memoir, during his first term as president. Trump called her allegations false and said " she's not my type " in an interview. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. Enter your email address Subscribe Form error message goes here. Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm. Trump's attorneys said Wednesday they would continue to appeal, and accused his political opponents of using the legal system against him. They asked the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to stop the payment. Carroll's lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The jury had reached its verdict — in a trial that Trump did not attend — after Carroll testified that their flirtatious and friendly chance encounter at the department store turned violent. Trump insisted he never knew Carroll, now 82, a former advice columnist. He accused her of trying to sell books at his expense and of having political motives. READ MORE: Supreme Court rejects Trump's push to toss $5 million verdict in E. Jean Carroll sexual abuse case Carroll sued Trump after New York changed its laws to give sexual abuse survivors a fresh chance to sue over attacks that happened in the distant past. Trump is also appealing $83 million in defamation compensation granted to Carroll by a separate Manhattan jury after a 2024 trial where Trump briefly testified. At that trial, Kaplan required the jury to accept the findings of the previous jury and only determine how much money, if any, Trump owed Carroll for comments he made about her while he was president. Trump's lawyers complained that the judge, in setting rules for the damages trial, had barred Trump and his defense team from telling the jury that the encounter with Carroll never happened. READ MORE: AP report: Justice Department opens investigation into E. Jean Carroll, who successfully sued Trump for sexual abuse and defamation When the 2nd Circuit declined to let all of its judges rehear an appeal of the $83 million award, Circuit Judge Denny Chin wrote that Trump had said multiple times over many years that Carroll lied for political and financial gain and had suggested she was too unattractive for Trump to have sexually assaulted her. "As a result of Trump's statements, Carroll was harassed and humiliated, subjected to death threats, and feared for her physical safety for years," Chin said. "And Trump showed no remorse, continuing his attacks against Carroll during and after two federal trials, and even proclaiming two days into the Carroll I trial that he would continue to defame her 'a thousand times.'" A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. Donate now