Question 1

What are Carroll’s allegations?

Accepted Answer

In 2019, Carroll accused Trump of sexually assaulting her in the dressing room of Bergdorf Goodman, an upscale department store, in the mid-1990s. According to Carroll, she and Trump ran into each other at the store in a chance encounter, and he asked her to help him pick out a present for another woman. During this encounter, she says, he attacked her. Carroll is among more than a dozen women who have accused Trump of sexual misconduct over the years. Trump has denied the allegations, calling the women liars and sometimes insulting them in other ways, and did much the same with Carroll. At the time she publicly accused him, Trump denied having met her and said “people should pay dearly for such false accusations.” He also said she was “not my type.”

Question 2

What lawsuits did she bring against Trump?

Accepted Answer

Carroll sued Trump for defamation in 2019, a few months after accusing him of assaulting her. Last year, Carroll filed another lawsuit, this one under a relatively new law in New York that allows sexual assault victims to sue years later. Proponents of the law said the measure, which was signed into law last year, was needed because it can take time for sexual assault survivors to feel ready to come forward. Both of Carroll’s cases are in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. In her lawsuit last year, Carroll said Trump “forcibly raped and groped her” and that he “knew he was lying” when he responded to her allegations. Both cases had been scheduled to go to trial in April. Carroll and Trump sought to have the two lawsuits merged into one case, arguing that this would reduce costs and make the proceedings more efficient. But District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, overseeing both cases, rejected that request. Kaplan postponed the defamation trial in Carroll’s first lawsuit, which had been set for April 10, delaying it indefinitely. The lawsuit filed last year, in which Carroll accused Trump of battery and defaming her, went to trial April 25 and concluded May 9. Carroll sought monetary damages, which she won. Trump did not appear in court or testify, and after the verdict, Trump’s presidential campaign released a statement vowing to appeal the jury’s decision, arguing that it was politically motivated.

Question 3

Are there any other ongoing court cases related to her lawsuits?

Accepted Answer

Carroll’s first lawsuit is still pending. The D.C. Court of Appeals this year heard arguments about whether Trump was acting within his job as president when he denied Carroll’s claims in 2019. This legal question is key to whether Carroll’s defamation allegations against Trump can proceed. Because government employees are protected from defamation suits, this court’s decision in Washington could effectively end Carroll’s defamation accusations in New York. Trump’s attorneys and lawyers with the Justice Department have argued he was responding as the president, and therefore was protected from a defamation suit. Carroll’s lawyers, meanwhile, said he was acting as a private citizen when denying her allegations. The D.C. court essentially punted on the issue in April, leaving it unresolved.

Question 4

Were any special precautions taken with the jury in such a high-profile case?

Accepted Answer

Kaplan, the judge, announced that jurors hearing the sexual assault case will be kept anonymous, owing to the intense scrutiny and risk of harassment or retaliation they could face. Writing in an opinion issued in March, Kaplan directly linked this decision to some of Trump’s past rhetoric, including his response to the Manhattan grand jury that was on the verge of indicting the former president. Before he was indicted, Trump posted on social media that his arrest was imminent and called for protests. Kaplan highlighted this, along with what he called Trump’s repeated attacks on “courts, judges, various law enforcement officials and other public officials, and even individual jurors in other matters.”

Question 5

What has Trump said as Carroll’s lawsuits unfolded?

Accepted Answer

Trump has continued to deny Carroll’s claims and criticize her. In a lengthy post on social media last fall, Trump continued saying he did not know Carroll, denied that the attack took place and said Carroll “is not telling the truth.” He also again said she was “not my type.” Trump, who is running for president again, has also been deposed in the case, echoing some of the same points he made on social media. During a sworn deposition last year, Trump continued calling Carroll a liar and claimed she was mentally ill. He also falsely asserted that Carroll said in a television interview that she enjoyed being raped. While being deposed, Trump — who has repeatedly insisted he would never be romantically interested in Carroll — also mistook a photograph of her for his ex-wife Marla Maples. “That’s Marla, yeah,” he said when shown the photograph, according to unsealed excerpts of the deposition. “That’s my wife.” His attorney quickly corrected him.

Question 6

What happened in the civil trial in New York?

Accepted Answer

A jury of nine people were seated on April 25 to hear the case. The trial lasted two weeks, with Carroll taking the stand across three days of sometimes graphic testimony. Jurors also heard from two of Carroll’s friends, who said that she told them at the time about the alleged attack. Trump was not required to appear in court or testify, and he did neither. His attorney did not call any witnesses, and instead focused on what he described inconsistencies in Carroll’s account. Because it was a civil trial, Trump faced no jail time and was not charged with a crime related to Carroll’s accusations, and Carroll’s lawyers did not have to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt, the standard for a criminal trial. Instead, Carroll largely needed to prove her claims with a preponderance of evidence, essentially meaning that her allegations were more likely than not true. She sought unspecified monetary damages in her lawsuit. The jury awarded her $5 million in combined damages. Keith L. Alexander contributed to this report.

What to know about the Trump-E. Jean Carroll civil case