The long, sordid, and constitutionally significant legal battle between the writer E. Jean Carroll and President Donald Trump has finally reached a momentous conclusion – for now. An appeals court has upheld the staggering $83.3 million defamation verdict against him. This saga has been filled with shocking and historic moments that have tested the very foundations of the rule of law.
This is a countdown of the seven key moments that led to today’s stunning final verdict. It is a journey that began in a department store dressing room three decades ago and ended with a powerful affirmation of a core American principle: that no person, not even a former president, is above the law.
7. The “Access Hollywood” Tape: A President’s Own Words
The infamous 2005 “Access Hollywood” tape, where Trump bragged about assaulting women, became a centerpiece of the trial. Carroll’s lawyers argued it was not just locker room talk, but a confession of his standard operating procedure.
“I just start kissing them… I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star they let you do it… Grab them by the p—-. You can do anything.”
The jury was allowed to hear these words, a decision that set the stage for the entire case. It was a powerful moment where the court determined that a president’s own words could be used as evidence to establish a pattern of behavior.
6. The “She’s Not My Type” Defense
The legal battle began in earnest with Trump’s response to Carroll’s initial accusation. Denying he had ever met her, he famously and repeatedly stated, “She’s not my type.”
This was the statement that opened the door to the second, and much larger, defamation lawsuit. It transformed the case from a battle over a past alleged assault into a current and ongoing legal injury, with a jury ultimately deciding the statement was a malicious lie designed to destroy Carroll’s reputation.
5. The “Marla” Moment
During a sworn deposition, Trump was shown a photograph of himself with Carroll and others from the 1980s. In a stunning and unforced error, he misidentified the woman he claimed never to have met.
“That’s Marla, yeah. That’s my wife,” Trump said, mistaking Carroll for his second wife, Marla Maples.
This moment was a devastating blow to his central defense that Carroll was “not my type.” It provided a dramatic and deeply human moment of contradiction that resonated powerfully with the jury.
4. The First Verdict: Liable for Sexual Abuse
In May 2023, a New York jury delivered a historic verdict. They found Donald Trump liable for the sexual abuse and defamation of E. Jean Carroll, awarding her $5 million in damages.
This was the first time a former president had been held legally responsible for a sexual assault. It was a stunning moment of accountability and a powerful demonstration that even a former Commander-in-Chief must answer for his actions in a court of law.
3. The CNN Town Hall: A Reckless Repetition
The day after the first verdict, Trump appeared at a CNN town hall and, before a live national audience, repeated the very same defamatory statements about Carroll.
He again called her a “wack job” and her story “fake.”
This was a moment of stunning legal recklessness. Carroll’s lawyers immediately used his own words from that broadcast as the basis for the second defamation trial. His decision to double down on his attacks, in defiance of a jury’s verdict, would prove to be an extraordinarily costly mistake.
2. The Second Verdict: The $83.3 Million Judgment
The second trial in January 2024 was not about whether the assault happened – a jury had already decided that. It was only about how much Trump would have to pay in damages for continuing to defame Carroll after the first verdict.
The jury’s answer was a staggering $83.3 million. This was not just a financial penalty; it was a punitive and historic rebuke from a jury of his peers. It was a declaration that in our constitutional system, there are profound consequences for maliciously defaming a private citizen, no matter how powerful you are.
1. An Appeals Court Affirms Justice
This is today’s breaking news. After months of appeals, a federal appeals court has officially upheld the $83.3 million defamation verdict against Donald Trump. The court found no reason to overturn the jury’s decision, bringing this long legal saga to a decisive end.
This is the final, emphatic legal statement from the judicial branch. It is the moment where the checks and balances of our constitutional system have fully engaged and held firm.
The journey from an assault in a dressing room to a nearly $100 million judgment is a surreal and uniquely American story, but its constitutional legacy is a powerful reaffirmation of an ancient principle: nemo est supra leges – no one is above the law.
President Trump’s legal team certainly has the right to ask the Supreme Court to hear the case, but whether the Court will agree to do so is an entirely different matter, and the odds are very long.
The Process: Petitioning the Court
The next step for the president’s lawyers would be to file a “petition for a writ of certiorari.” This is a formal, written argument asking the nine justices to take the case. The Supreme Court is not required to hear most appeals; it chooses its cases very selectively.
For the Court to agree to hear the case, at least four of the nine justices must vote to grant the petition. This is known as the “Rule of Four.” The Court receives thousands of petitions each year and agrees to hear only a tiny fraction – typically fewer than 100.