Trump's courtroom antics doom bid for new trial in E. Jean Carroll case

A federal court shot down Donald Trump's request for a new trial or a reduced penalty in E. Jean Carroll's defamation case.

U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan found the ex-president's motion for a new trial to be without merit, saying that jurors could see for themselves during the course of the trial that Carroll had proven her case and that Trump had acted with malice.

"There was evidence that Mr. Trump’s statements about Ms. Carroll only increased in frequency and vitriol as trial approached, with Mr. Trump repeating the same or similar attacks on Ms. Carroll despite knowing that a jury and the Court already had held his similar 2022 statement to have been defamatory," Kaplan wrote.

"The jury in this case at least arguably was entitled, moreover, to conclude that Mr. Trump’s continued defamation of Ms. Carroll —even during the course of trial — in turn warranted a finding that he would not stop attacking Ms. Carroll unless faced with a significant deterrent."

The ex-president's attorneys Alina Habba and John Hauer had asked the court to grant a new trial because, they argued, some relevant evidence had not been included and the jury had been "erroneously instructed" about punitive damages, but Kaplan found that Trump's position as president made his malicious comments about Carroll especially harmful.

"The jury could have found that Mr. Trump wielded his position as arguably the most powerful and famous man in the world to broadcast his lies to millions of dedicated followers in an effort to destroy Ms. Carroll’s credibility, to punish her for coming forward, and to deter other women from doing so as well," Kaplan wrote.

Trump's behavior in the courtroom, in full view of the jury, also proved many of Carroll's claims about him and his intentions, the judge wrote.

"Beyond his out-of-court statements disparaging Ms. Carroll during trial — many of which were introduced in evidence — the jury could have found that Mr. Trump’s demeanor and conduct in the courtroom itself put his hatred and disdain on full display," Kaplan wrote.

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"Mr. Trump could be heard repeatedly complaining to his counsel about the proceedings, so much so that plaintiff’s counsel twice requested that the Court instruct him to stop. In particular, during Ms. Carroll’s testimony, the jury could have found, Mr. Trump could be heard making audible comments that Ms. Carroll’s testimony was false, that the proceedings were a 'witch hunt' and a 'con job,' and most notably, that his earlier statements disparaging Ms. Carroll were 'true.'"

"Most dramatically, mere minutes after plaintiff’s counsel began her closing argument, Mr. Trump conspicuously stood and walked out of the courtroom for no apparent reason save to evidence his disapproval, though he was present again when Court resumed later that morning and remained for his own counsel’s entire summation."

"On this exceptional record," the judge added, "the punitive damages evidence passes constitutional muster."