May 22 (UPI) — E. Jean Carroll, who won $5 million in damages after a jury found former President Donald Trump sexually assaulted and defamed her, has gone back to court seeking “very substantial” monetary damages over televised comments Trump made about her.
Carroll’s lawyers filed an amended complaint Monday to a 2019 defamation lawsuit against Trump, which is still pending. Carroll is now asking for no less than $10 million in damages because of what Trump said on May 10 during a CNN town hall program, one day after a jury found he had sexually abused Carroll in a New York City department store in the 1990s.
“Trump’s defamatory statements post-verdict show the depth of his malice toward Carroll since it is hard to imagine defamatory conduct that could possibly be more motivated by hatred, ill will, or spite,” the amended complaint says.
“Trump used a national platform to demean and mock Carroll. He egged on a laughing audience as he made light of his violent sexual assault, called Carroll names, implied that Carroll was asking to be assaulted, and dismissed the jury’s verdict vindicating Carroll,” the complaint adds.
“Trump falsely stated that he did not sexually abuse Carroll, that he has no idea who Carroll was, and that Carroll’s now-proven accusation was a ‘fake’ and ‘made up story’ created by a ‘whack job,'” the complaint said, quoting Trump’s comments.
Carroll’s lawyers are asking a Manhattan federal court judge to amend the lawsuit to reflect his recent statements, which they argue are also defamatory.
“This conduct supports a very substantial punitive damages award in Carroll’s favor to both punish Trump, to deter him from engaging in further defamation, and to deter others from doing the same,” the complaint says.
“It makes a mockery of the jury verdict and our justice system if he can just keep on repeating the same defamatory statements over and over again,” Carroll’s lawyer Roberta Kaplan told The New York Times on Monday.
Earlier this month, a New York jury ruled in Carroll’s second lawsuit, which was filed in 2022, that Trump must pay $2 million in compensation and $20,000 for battery. The jury also awarded Carroll $1.7 million for repetitional repair, $1 million for compensatory damages and $280,000 in punitive damages.
Trump’s lawyer Joseph Tacopina has filed a notice of appeal of that verdict. Trump continues to deny he sexually assaulted Carroll and claims he has “absolutely no idea who this woman is.”
Trump’s defense has argued the case was politically motivated, as the former president has announced his candidacy for re-election in 2024.
While Trump did not testify in the Carroll case, he is scheduled to attend his second court hearing as a criminal defendant Tuesday via a live video feed as he faces 34 felony charges related to falsifying records in a hush-money scheme.
Trump pleaded not guilty last month in New York City for his alleged role in the payment of at least $130,000 to adult film star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign.
On Tuesday, New York Judge Juan Merchan is expected to explain the terms of a protective order, which bars Trump from publicizing any material that has not already been made public.
Merchan has stressed that this is not a gag order and that he is working hard to ensure that Trump “is given every opportunity possible to advance his candidacy.”
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