A federal judge ruled Thursday against former President Donald Trump in his bid to dismiss writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation allegations against him on grounds of “presidential immunity.”
In court documents, Trump’s lawyers argued that he could not be held accountable for calling Carroll an opportunistic liar in 2019, in part because he did so to fulfill his presidential duties.
“Mr. Trump argues that he is entitled to absolute presidential immunity because he ‘made the three alleged defamatory statements in direct response to Plaintiff’s allegations that impugned his character and, in turn, threatened his ability to effectively govern the nation.'” said Lewis, a US District Court judge. Kaplan wrote in a 46-page article decision.
But, the judge wrote, Trump’s response was overblown, and presidential immunity “is not a ‘get off the hook’ card.”
Carroll is suing Trump in federal court in New York alleging that he defamed her after she went public with his allegation that Trump raped her in the dressing room of a Manhattan department store in the mid-1990s.
“Mr. Trump did not simply deny Ms. Carroll’s sexual assault allegation,” Kaplan wrote. “Instead, he accused Ms. Carroll of lying about him sexually assaulting her in order to increase sales of her book, gain publicity and/or pursue a political agenda.”
“Even assuming that the President’s decision to publicly deny an allegation of personal wrongdoing falls within the outer perimeter of his official duties, it does not follow that the President’s own personal attacks on his accuser fall equally within that boundary,” he added.
“Mr. Trump does not identify any connection between the allegedly defamatory content of his statements, that Ms. Carroll fabricated her sexual assault allegation and did so for financial and personal gain, with any official responsibility of the President. The Court also cannot think of any possible connection,” Kaplan wrote.
The judge also said Trump waited too long to present the immunity defense, noting that his lawyers offered “no explanation” for the “three-year delay” in presenting the immunity defense.
Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, who is not related to the judge, praised Thursday’s ruling.
“Judge Kaplan’s summary judgment denial confirms that, once again, Donald Trump’s alleged defenses to E. Jean Carroll’s defamation allegations do not work,” and “removes one more impediment to the trial on February 15.” January” in the case, Kaplan said in a statement. statement.
Trump’s lawyer, Alina Habba, said: “We disagree with the court’s decision and will take appropriate steps to preserve all viable defenses.”
The defamation case was the first Carroll brought against Trump, but it will be the second to go to trial.
In May, a jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll and then defaming her in comments he made after leaving office. The jury awarded Carroll $5 million in damages, a verdict Trump is appealing.
That case went to trial first as the pending case was tied to appeals on issues related to the presidency.
Carroll has since amended his original lawsuit to add new defamation claims stemming from Trump’s comments following the $5 million verdict, including calling Carroll’s claims a “hoax” and referring to it as a “crazy job.” .
Trump filed a countersuit against Carroll on Wednesday, in part for continuing to refer to the alleged incident as a “rape” since the jury in May concluded that Carroll had been unable to prove by a “preponderance of the evidence” that Trump had raped her.
Instead, the jury found Trump liable for assault after deciding that Carroll had proven that Trump sexually abused her.
