A New York judge has turned down Donald Trump’s plea for additional time to arrange an $83m bond necessary for covering damages to E Jean Carroll. Following a January jury verdict, Trump was found liable for defaming the former columnist by denying allegations of sexual assault against her. As a result, Trump is required to secure the bond or make a cash deposit by next week. This legal obligation comes in addition to over $400m he owes from a separate fraud case.
Last year, a jury concluded that Trump sexually assaulted Carroll, a former Elle Magazine columnist, in a Manhattan Bergdorf Goodman store in the 1990s. He was found guilty of defamation for his 2019 denial of the assault, leading to a January order to pay Carroll $83.3m. Additionally, Trump previously settled a separate defamation claim related to the assault by paying Carroll $5m soon after the judgment.
Judge Lewis Kaplan, who formalized the verdict in February, granted Trump 30 days to post the bond or pay in cash. However, Kaplan noted that Trump’s late request, 25 days into the deadline, to delay the payment was due to his own procrastination. Carroll’s attorneys criticized Trump’s request for a delay, highlighting his unreliability as a debtor in light of the substantial judgment against him.
Responding to the decision, a spokesperson for Trump described it as part of an ongoing “lawless witch hunt,” echoing the former president’s usual rhetoric concerning his legal challenges. Despite facing significant legal expenses and damages this year, including a $355m penalty ordered by Judge Arthur Engoron in February for asset inflation fraud — amounting to over $450m with interest — Trump, the likely Republican presidential nominee, has expressed confidence in managing his legal financial obligations.–Web Desk