New York, NY – Former President Donald Trump has obtained a $92 million bond to cover a jury award in a defamation case filed by writer E. Jean Carroll. The bond was approved by Judge Lewis A. Kaplan on Tuesday, following an agreement between the lawyers involved. This development comes as Trump’s legal team announced their intention to appeal the verdict to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan.
Trump’s bond offer comes after weeks of relative silence on the matter. At a recent campaign rally, however, he resumed criticizing Carroll’s credibility and accused her of falsely accusing him of rape. Carroll’s lawyer responded by suggesting the possibility of a new defamation lawsuit if Trump continues to disparage Carroll’s claims.
The defamation trial, which concluded in January, resulted in a jury awarding Carroll $83.3 million. The jury was instructed to assess damages from Trump’s 2019 statements while he was president and took into account the findings of another Manhattan jury that had previously awarded Carroll $5 million. Although the jury determined that Trump had defamed Carroll in 2022 and sexually abused her in 1996, they did not find evidence to support her claim of rape based on the New York state definition.
During the trial, Trump was present for most of the proceedings but was limited in his testimony, as he was not allowed to challenge the jury’s previous conclusions. He did not appear for the May trial. However, this recent bond approval indicates Trump’s commitment to pursuing all legal avenues available to him.
It is worth noting that Trump is currently facing multiple legal challenges, including a $454 million civil fraud penalty and four separate criminal cases. These ongoing legal battles continue to shape the post-presidential narrative for the former president.