Trump suffers third legal defeat in E. Jean Carroll case within 24 hours

Donald Trump is finally paying E. Jean Carroll.

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals denied the president's emergency motion to temporarily suspend the court-ordered payment late Wednesday. The decision came shortly after Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered the release of $5 million in court-held funds to the columnist, more than three years after Trump was found civilly liable for sexually assaulting Carroll in a department store in late 1995.

Legal Maneuvers Rejected

The last-minute stay was a Hail Mary attempt by Trump's legal team, who had tried to appeal the case to the Supreme Court earlier this week. The nation's highest court rejected that request on Tuesday.

Despite the Supreme Court's decision, Trump's lawyers wrote to Judge Kaplan asking him not to release the funds, claiming the president's petition for a new hearing was still pending. By Wednesday morning, the Supreme Court docket had been updated to reflect that it was anticipating a corrected petition from Trump's team. However, hours later, Kaplan ordered the release of the funds to Carroll regardless.

Judge Kaplan's Ruling

In a six-page memorandum penned Wednesday, Kaplan noted that Trump "has been stalling this case for years."

"It is time for him to 'do equity' and pay the judgement," Kaplan ordered.

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals clearly agreed.

Background on the Case

Carroll has a long and contentious history with Trump. After the 2023 civil case, Trump tried and failed to sue Carroll for defamation. Kaplan later ruled that Trump had continued to defame the advice columnist by:

• Denying the rape on the basis that she wasn't his "type"
• Accusing her of fabricating the sexual assault allegations to benefit her book

A jury awarded Carroll $83.3 million in that case, though Carroll has not yet received any proceeds from that decision.

Late last month, Carroll's attorney Roberta Kaplan (no relation to the judge) asked for an expedited payment schedule for the sum Trump owes, noting that the president now owes interest on the original amount.

"It is time for this case to come to an end," Carroll's attorney wrote in a Tuesday legal filing.

Read more: Judge Orders Release of $5.8 Million Trump Owes E. Jean Carroll

Family of Mexican Man Killed by ICE Demands Investigation

ICE is making people's worst fears a reality.

The family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican man who was shot and killed Tuesday by immigration enforcement agents in Texas, is calling for a full investigation into his death.

Son's Emotional Account

Speaking at a press conference Wednesday, Ronaldo Salgado, the deceased's son, gave an emotional account of how he learned of his father's death.

"I saw a video posted on Facebook that he had been shot. I recognized him immediately," Ronaldo said, his voice breaking. "Not from his appearance, but from his voice, crying for help as he lay on the street, bleeding out."

Salgado set off for the area where his father was working construction in North Houston and remained on the site for hours seeking answers. League of United Latin American Citizens Representative Conchita Reyes connected him to Texas Representative Sylvia Garcia to locate his father at Ben Taub Hospital.

"With all the hope in the world I drove to Ben Taub Hospital, the hospital that I was born in, my brother Lorenzo Jr. was born in, and my youngest was born in. I went to Ben Taub Hospital, demanded answers, but no one could give them to me," Salgado said.

"I learned of my father's passing from a news report on social media, not the hospital, not law enforcement," he continued.

Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was undocumented, but his three children are U.S. citizens.