Justice Department Launches Criminal Probe into E. Jean Carroll Over Possible Perjury

The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into E. Jean Carroll, the 82‑year‑old former magazine writer who has accused former President Donald J. Trump of sexual assault, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter.

The inquiry is reported to focus on whether Ms. Carroll committed perjury in the civil suits she brought against Mr. Trump. Carroll previously secured a $5 million civil judgment finding that Trump sexually abused and defamed her, a decision the president asked the Supreme Court to overturn last November.

U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros, appointed by Trump to lead the Northern District of Illinois, initiated the probe, the source said. CNN initially reported the investigation’s existence.

Carroll’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who has overseen several inquiries into the president’s associates, has recused himself from this case because of his prior representation of Trump in the Carroll litigation.

In May 2023, a federal jury in New York found Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the mid‑1990s and for defaming her by calling her claims a hoax on social media.

Earlier this month, Trump secured a delay in another defamation case in which Carroll was awarded $83 million. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that Trump does not have to pay the judgment while he pursues an appeal to the Supreme Court.

Benjamin Weiser contributed reporting.

Source link