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By: The opinion
A federal judge in Manhattan on Friday denied Donald Trump’s latest attempt to delay a defamation trial with writer E. Jean Carroll scheduled for January, according to CNN.
Carroll sued Trump in 2019, alleging that he defamed her when she denied his accusation that he raped her, she said that she was not his “type” and suggested that she made up the accusation to sell a book. The case has been tied to litigation because Trump was president at the time he made the remarks.
In an injunction, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan denied Trump’s motion to stay the case pending an appeal.
Trump had asked Kaplan to allow the delay as his legal team litigates an appeal of the judge’s ruling that Trump had previously waived the use of presidential immunity as a defense in the defamation lawsuit.
Kaplan said he is not required to suspend the case while the appeals court considers the matter.
“While there is a public interest in immunizing presidents for actions duly performed within the scope of their functions, there is also a public interest in ensuring that even presidents are held accountable for actions that, as this Court has already determined in this case, do not fall within that scope,” Kaplan wrote.
The judge also objected to any further delay and reiterated his concern about the “advanced” ages of Trump and Carroll. Trump is 77 years old; Carroll is 79 years old. Kaplan is also over 70 years old.
“Both parties are elderly, and a stay of this case pending the resolution of Mr. Trump’s appeal would threaten to delay any compensation to which Ms. Carroll may be entitled by at least several months, if not a year or more. ”, says the order.
Carroll’s lawyers had opposed Trump’s stay motion, arguing that a delay would put the trial in the crosshairs of his other criminal trials and the presidential campaign.
Kaplan also accused Trump of stalling the litigation with Carroll for years. This is the fourth attempt to delay the trial, Kaplan’s order said.
Carroll separately sued Trump in 2022 under New York’s Adult Survivors Law for assault and defamation for statements he made in October 2022.
That case went to trial this spring, and a jury found that Trump sexually abused Carroll and defamed her. She received $5 million dollars.
Earlier this month, Kaplan dismissed a defamation lawsuit that Trump filed against Carroll for statements he made after the jury’s verdict. Trump’s lawyers have appealed that ruling.
Keep reading:
– The Department of Justice changed its mind on Trump’s immunity in the case of E. Jean Carroll
– Trump countersues E Jean Carroll for defamation
– Trump reacts to Carroll’s new lawsuit: “I would not want to meet her or touch her”