E. Jean Carroll says she will ‘do good’ with money from Trump defamation case

Writer E. Jean Carroll said Monday she will “do good” with the $83.3 million former President Trump was ordered to pay her in a defamation trial.

“Oh, it’s inspiring. We talked about it a lot. We’re going to do good with that money,” Carroll said on “CNN This Morning” when asked what she will do with Trump’s money. She joked that Mary Trump, the niece of the former president, suggested turning Trump Tower in New York City into an animal sanctuary with the funds.

“No, but we’re inspired to not waste a penny of this,” Carroll continued. “And we have some good ideas that we’re working on.”

On Friday, a jury ordered Trump to pay $83.3 million for defaming Carroll in 2019 when he denied the writer’s accusation he sexually assaulted her in the mid-1990s. Trump says he will appeal the verdict.

A separate jury previously found the former president liable for sexually abusing Carroll in a defamation trial last year over a different comment and ordered him to pay $5 million.

When pressed for more details, Carroll suggested she will use some of the money to help “restore women their rights” and pointed to Trump’s past comments about women.

“So this win really was for every woman who stood up and been knocked down. Every woman. And Robbie and I are here where we planted our flag, and we want to turn things around and make sure that women are believed,” she said, referring to her attorney, Roberta Kaplan.

In an interview with The New York Times over the weekend, Carroll also said she will come up with a way to use the money to create changes.

“I can’t say what they are yet. We will all talk and come up with a great plan,” she told The Times.

However, Carroll may not see the money from Trump for months, or even years, as he appeals the jury’s verdict.