Justice Department reverses course on defending Trump in E. Jean Carroll defamation case
The DOJ’s decision is a significant blow to Trump’s chances of winning the defamation case against Carroll.
The Justice Department has changed its mind on whether or not to represent the late President Donald Trump in a defamation case brought by E. Jean Carroll.
The DOJ stated in a court document on Tuesday that it is no longer of the opinion that Trump was acting in the course of his presidential duties when he refuted Carroll’s claim that he sexually assaulted her in the mid-1990s.
In a second lawsuit, Carroll filed earlier this year, a jury held Trump responsible for battery and defamation. This decision has since been reversed.
“This is a major victory for E. Jean Carroll,” said Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan. “It shows that the Justice Department is no longer willing to defend Donald Trump’s lies and his attacks on women.”
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Trump’s lawyer, Alina Habba, said she was “disappointed” by the DOJ’s decision.
“We will continue to defend the former president against these baseless allegations,” Habba said.
The defamation case is scheduled to go to trial in January 2024.
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What does this mean for Trump?
The DOJ’s turnabout is a significant setback for Trump. It implies that he will no longer have the assistance of the government in his defense against the slander action.
This might make it harder for Trump to prevail in the case. Trump’s denials of the attack were already met with skepticism by the jury in the battery and defamation case against him. The DOJ’s decision to discontinue its support for Trump may make the jury in the defamation case even more doubtful.
What does this mean for Carroll?
Carroll has won a significant win with the DOJ’s reversal. She is now more likely to succeed in her defamation lawsuit against Trump as a result.
In the violence and slander lawsuit against Trump, the jury had already shown Carroll some favor. The likelihood that the jury will decide in Carroll’s favor may increase as a result of the DOJ’s decision to stop supporting Trump.
What happens next?
A trial in the defamation action is set for January 2024. How the DOJ’s decision will impact the trial is currently unknown.
It’s feasible that the DOJ may continue to help Trump in some way during the trial. But it’s also feasible that the DOJ won’t continue to back Trump in any way.
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Trump’s political prospects may be significantly impacted by how the defamation case turns out. If he loses the case, it might be harder for him to seek for government again and hurt his reputation.
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