Trump Petitions Supreme Court to Overturn Abuse Verdict in E. Jean Carroll Case

By Jim Mishler | Monday, 10 November 2025 07:29 PM EST
President Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to overturn a jury verdict that found him liable for abuse against writer E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s, according to his legal team. Carroll has taken Trump to trial twice and secured a total of $88.3 million in damages. The petition marks the first time the dispute has reached the nation’s highest court. In 2023, a Manhattan jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll in a department store dressing room decades earlier and for defaming her when he denied her allegations during his presidency. That jury ordered him to pay $5 million. The filing states that Carroll waited more than 20 years to falsely accuse Donald Trump, who she politically opposes, until after he became the 45th President, when she could maximize political injury to him and profit for herself. Trump’s lawyers argue that jurors should not have been allowed to view a related video or hear testimony from other women who accused Trump of sexual assault. “The purpose was solely, and improperly, prejudicial,” the petition says. An appeals court rejected those arguments in June by an 8-2 vote. While the Supreme Court rarely takes cases solely to review lower court errors, Trump’s lawyers claim the evidentiary issues raise legal questions that have divided lower courts. “President Trump will keep winning against Liberal Lawfare, as he continues to focus on his mission to Make America Great Again,” the statement continued. The justices are expected to consider whether to hear the case during a closed-door conference later this term. A judge has already ruled that the first jury’s verdict made Trump automatically liable in Carroll’s separate defamation lawsuit. In that case, a second jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million. That verdict has not yet reached the Supreme Court. A legal spokesperson for Trump, in an earlier statement, referred to the Carroll case as a sham. “The American People are supporting President Trump in historic numbers, and they demand an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system,” the statement said. Jim Mishler ✉ Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.