Trump demands judge give him a new trial in E. Jean Carroll case

Former President Donald Trump is demanding that he be given a do-over trial in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case.

According to CNN's Kara Scannell, "Trump argued that Judge Lewis Kaplan wrongly prohibited him from defending himself during his brief testimony and that warrants a new trial."

In court filings made on Tuesday, attorneys for Trump "said Kaplan erred when he stopped Trump from testifying about 'his own state of mind' and when he gave an 'erroneous jury instruction on the definition of common-law malice.' Trump’s lawyers said the jury should have been told they needed to find that it was Trump’s 'sole, exclusive desire to harm' Carroll."

Carroll, a writer and advice columnist, accused Trump of raping her in a Manhattan department store at some point in the late 1990s. Trump repeatedly said she was lying to advance her career, which was the focus of her defamation claims.

A prior jury had already ruled Trump liable for $5 million in damages for defamation and sexual abuse. In this second proceeding, Kaplan instructed the jury that those findings of fact were already settled and not for them to determine, and they were there to assess damages.

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Despite this, Trump and his attorney frequently tried to dispute the facts of the case, and lawyer Alina Habba frequently clashed with Kaplan.

Following all this litigation, Trump now owes $83.3 million to Carroll for the second trial, on top of the $5 million from the previous one.

"The new legal effort comes as Trump has asked Kaplan for more time to post the bond, which is due shortly," noted the report. "Trump asked the judge to give him 30 days after the judge rules on post-trial briefs. Carroll opposed the request, saying Trump hasn’t provided any evidence that he can afford the payment. The judge is weighing the request."

At the same time, Trump is also trying to delay bond on the $464 million in damages and interest he owes from the civil fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

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