The United States Supreme Court has declined to hear President Donald Trump's appeal to overturn a $5 million verdict in favor of former magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll, who accused him of sexual abuse and defamation. The justices rejected Trump's arguments that the trial was unfair due to evidentiary rulings.

The case stems from Carroll's 2019 memoir excerpt alleging that Trump raped her in a Manhattan department store dressing room in 1996. In 2022, Trump called her claim a "hoax" and a "con job" on social media, prompting the defamation suit.

In 2023, a federal jury in Manhattan found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, awarding $5 million in damages. Trump's lawyers argued that the verdict was tainted by "highly inflammatory" evidence, including testimony from two other women who accused Trump of past sexual misconduct.

The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the verdict in 2024, ruling that the evidence established a "repeated, idiosyncratic pattern of conduct" consistent with Carroll's allegations. The Supreme Court's decision comes as it handles other major cases affecting Trump's agenda.

Carroll was also awarded an additional $83.3 million in a second defamation trial over Trump's 2019 denials. Trump is appealing that ruling as well, though it has not yet reached the Supreme Court.

Source: www.aljazeera.com