A U.S. District judge denied former President Donald Trump’s request to dismiss a defamation lawsuit filed in 2019 against him by writer E. Jean Carroll on the grounds of presidential immunity and claims his remarks “were not defamatory per se,” in the latest legal blow from the ex-president in his attempt to push back on sexual misconduct allegations.
On Thursday, June 29, 2023, a U.S. judge found Trump’s request to dismiss E. Jean Carroll’s original ... [+]
The lawsuit Trump was attempting to get dismissed was Carroll’s original lawsuit from 2019 accusing the former president of defaming her by denying he raped her in the 1990s; the suit has been held up in courts, though Carroll won a second defamation suit against Trump just last month.
Judge Lewis Kaplan determined in a filing Thursday that Trump’s request to dismiss the case was “without merit” and that it will move forward as scheduled.
In his motion to dismiss, Trump’s team argued he was “entitled to absolute presidential immunity,” his statements “were not defamatory per se,” most of his statements denying the incident were non-actionable opinion, and that Carroll consented to the allegedly defamatory statements.
The trial for this case is scheduled for January 15, 2024.
Earlier this week, Trump filed a countersuit against Carroll, accusing her of making “false statements” that he allegedly raped her. The countersuit comes just weeks after a jury in a civil trial found Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming Carroll and ordered him to pay $5 million in damages. Trump is arguing that Carroll defamed him because she continued to say he raped her after the jury in May found him liable of sexual abuse rather than rape.
Trump Sexually Abused E. Jean Carroll And Owes $5 Million In Damages, Jury Finds (Forbes)
Memorandum Opinion Denying Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgment (Court Listener)
Trump Accuses E. Jean Carroll Of Defamation Over Rape Claim (Forbes)