Updated January 26, 2024 Civil Rights
Major Abuse of Power
E. Jean Carroll: Jury Finds Sexual Abuse and Defamation; $83.3 Million Damages
Carroll, a longtime advice columnist, alleged Trump attacked her in the dressing room of Bergdorf Goodman in Manhattan in approximately 1996. Trump denied knowing her and described her as 'not my type.' The jury in May 2023 found Trump liable for sexual abuse (not rape, under the definition in New York law at the time) and defamation, awarding $5 million. After Trump continued publicly attacking Carroll following the verdict, she filed a second defamation suit; in January 2024, a jury awarded $83.3 million in compensatory and punitive damages — one of the largest defamation awards in U.S. history. Multiple other women made similar allegations; Trump denied all.