The US Supreme Court on Monday declined Donald Trump's request to review a New York jury's 2023 verdict that found him liable for sexually abusing writer E Jean Carroll and then defaming her. The justices did not provide an explanation or reasoning, and no public dissents were noted. The decision leaves intact the $5m civil judgment against Trump returned by the jury after a two-week trial.
Appeals Process Exhausted
The Supreme Court's decision comes after a three-judge panel at the Second US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan upheld the jury's verdict in 2024 and rejected Trump's arguments that the trial was unfair because the judge allowed jurors to hear evidence of his alleged past sexual misconduct. Trump reacted to the decision on Truth Social, writing: "Surprisingly, the Supreme Court declined to 'review' a Fake Case brought against me."
Carroll's Attorney Responds
Roberta Kaplan, Carroll's attorney, issued a statement in response to the decision. "Today's Supreme Court decision affirms once and for all the jury's unanimous verdict that President Donald J Trump sexually assaulted and defamed E Jean Carroll," Kaplan said. "His multiple efforts to appeal that verdict have all failed and today's ruling ends his quest to avoid accountability for his actions."
Background of the Case
Trump has been battling Carroll, a former advice columnist for Elle magazine, since she published an excerpt from her memoir in 2019 alleging that Trump had raped her in the 1990s in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in Manhattan. She filed the lawsuit three years later. Trump has repeatedly denied Carroll's claims and accused her of lying. In 2025, Trump asked the Supreme Court to review the case and overturn the verdict, but lawyers for Carroll urged the judges to reject the request.
Other Trump Administration News
In a separate ruling on Monday, the Supreme Court handed Trump and all future presidents the power to fire leaders of independent agencies or commissions, overturning 90 years of precedent. The Trump administration is also attempting to shrink public comment periods for fossil fuel leasing on federal land and plans to evaluate the performance of the California Coastal Commission in an escalation over energy production. Additionally, Trump claimed Iran has agreed to hold peace talks in Doha after recent clashes in the Strait of Hormuz. The Supreme Court also upheld a law allowing mail-in ballots that arrive after election day to be counted, and more than 100 Venezuelans deported from the US went missing after a hotel collapse in Venezuela.
