President Trump's appeal of a jury verdict finding him accountable for sexually abusing advice columnist E. Jean Carroll was denied by a federal appeals court 8-2 on Friday, leaving the Supreme Court as his last option. 

Late last year, a three-judge panel on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upheld the verdict. This was despite two justices' dissents, as The Hill reported.

“Simply re-litigating a case is not an appropriate use of the en banc procedure,” U.S. Circuit Judge Myrna Pérez wrote. She was joined by three of her colleagues, all of whom were appointed by former President Biden.

“In those rare instances in which a case warrants our collective consideration, it is almost always because it involves a question of exceptional importance or a conflict between the panel’s opinion and appellate precedent,” Pérez added.

Case Background

A 2023 New York jury found Trump responsible for sexually abusing Carroll in a Manhattan department store dressing room in the mid-1990s and ignoring her statements during his first term, landing him with a fine of $5 million.

Trump claims his trial was tainted by inappropriate evidence, including the “Access Hollywood” tape and testimony from other women accusing him of sexual assault.

The president also argues that he should have been able to inform jurors that a nonprofit organization, which was financed by Reid Hoffman, a Democratic megadonor and co-founder of LinkedIn, assisted Carroll in covering her legal expenses.

The trial judge deemed the columnist's allegations that Trump was targeted for political reasons inadmissible.

The Judge's Side

Two justices selected by Trump to the 2nd Circuit, Michael Park and Steven Menashi, dissented the majority opinion and claimed that the trial included a "series of indefensible evidentiary rulings."

“The result was a jury verdict based on impermissible character evidence and few reliable facts. No one can have any confidence that the jury would have returned the same verdict if the normal rules of evidence had been applied,” Menashi wrote.

Menashi and Park were the only two judges who voted against the decision.

Court Makeup

There are thirteen sitting judges on the 2nd Circuit who are qualified to hear the case, but three of them have mysteriously recused themselves.

“The American People are supporting President Trump in historic numbers, and they demand an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and a swift dismissal of all of the Witch Hunts, including the Democrat-funded Carroll Hoax, which will continue to be appealed,” a spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said in a statement following the decision.

“President Trump will keep winning against Liberal Lawfare, as he is focusing on his mission to Make America Great Again.”