In Manhattan on Tuesday, a jury of three women and six men came to a unanimous verdict that former President Donald Trump sexually abused and defamed magazine writer E. Jean Carroll, and awarded Carroll $5 million in damages.
The two-week trial represented the first time the many accusations lobbed at Trump over the years of sexual misconduct came before a jury. Carroll had accused the former president of raping her in the 1990s and of defaming her by posting on social media that such a claim was a hoax. The jury ultimately did not find that Trump raped Carroll, however.
Still, the verdict is an incredible victory for Carroll, who (with her supporters) had hoped the principles of the #MeToo movement would make it possible to hold a powerful political figure accountable.
Trump should pay nearly $3 million in damages to Carroll for successfully proving her defamation claim against him, the jury found. It also found that Trump should pay about $2 million in damages for her civil battery claim, thus bringing the total to $5 million.
Due to the trial being civil and not criminal, this is not an indictment against Trump and he will not go to prison.
