Trump ordered to pay writer Carroll $83.3-M in defamation case

Trump, who led the polls for the Republican primaries in Iowa and New Hamshire, left the courthouse minutes before the verdict and was not inside the room when the jury returned. (File photo: Donald J. Trump/Facebook)

NEW YORK – Former US President Donald Trump was ordered to pay writer E. Jean Carroll USD83.3 million whom he defamed in 2019, a Manhattan federal jury said Friday.

The nine-person jury – two women and seven men – ordered Trump to pay Carroll USD11 million for a reputational repair program, USD7.3 million in other compensatory damages and USD65 million in punitive damages.

The total is more than eight times what Carroll asked for in her initial lawsuit.

Trump, who led the polls for the Republican primaries in Iowa and New Hamshire, left the courthouse minutes before the verdict and was not inside the room when the jury returned.

On a Truth Social post, Trump blasted the verdict as “absolutely ridiculous” and said he would appeal the decision.

Friday’s verdict marked the second time Carroll won damages from Trump at trial.

Last May, a separate Manhattan federal jury awarded Carroll USD5 million in damages, including nearly USD3 million for defamation, after they found the former president sexually abused the writer and then defamed her in 2022 in public statements he made while denying the allegations.

Carroll, a former magazine columnist, alleged that Trump raped her in a department store in the mid-1990s and then defamed her when he denied her claim. (Xinhua)