DOJ moves to defend Trump in E. Jean Carroll defamation suit


The Justice Department moved Tuesday to take over President Trump's defense in a defamation suit filed by author E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of raping her in a Manhattan department store dressing room during the 1990s.
Carroll sued Trump last year after he called her a liar and claimed he had never met her before. In court papers, Justice Department lawyers argued that they should be able to replace Trump's private attorneys because he made his comments about Carroll while in office. The DOJ cited the Federal Tort Claims Act, which is an extremely unusual move, University of Texas law professor Steve Vladeck told The New York Times. Lawyers for the government have never before tried to use the law to include the actions of a president conducted before he took office, he explained.
Last month, a New York judge ruled that Carroll could go forward with her suit, after Trump attempted to temporarily halt the proceedings. Carroll's lawyers have asked that Trump provide a DNA sample, in order to check if any of his genetic material is on the dress Carroll said she wore during the alleged incident.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In a statement, Carroll's attorney Roberta A. Kaplan said the Justice Department's motion is "shocking" and Trump's "effort to wield the power of the U.S. government to evade responsibility for his private misconduct is without precedent and shows even more starkly how far he is willing to go to prevent the truth from coming out."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Citizenship: Trump order blocked again
Feature After the Supreme Court restricted nationwide injunctions, a federal judge turned to a class action suit to block Trump's order to end birthright citizenship
-
Loyalty tests: The purge at the FBI
Feature Kash Patel is conducting polygraph tests on FBI agents to weed out anyone speaking badly about him
-
The all-seeing tech giant
Feature Palantir's data-mining tools are used by spies and the military. Are they now being turned on Americans?
-
Japan's prime minister feels pressure after election losses
Speed Read Shigeru Ishiba has vowed to remain in office
-
President diagnosed with 'chronic venous insufficiency'
Speed Read The vein disorder has given Trump swollen ankles and visible bruising on his hands
-
'Bawdy' Trump letter supercharges Epstein scandal
Speed Read The Wall Street Journal published details of Trump's alleged birthday letter to Epstein
-
Fed chair Powell in Trump's firing line
Speed Read The president considers removing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell
-
Trump trashes supporters over Epstein files
speed read The president lashed out on social media following criticism of his administration's Jeffrey Epstein investigation
-
Judge nixes wiping medical debt from credit checks
Speed Read Medical debt can now be included in credit reports
-
Grijalva wins Democratic special primary for Arizona
Speed Read She will go up against Republican nominee Daniel Butierez to fill the US House seat her father held until his death earlier this year
-
US inflation jumps as Trump tariffs 'bite'
Speed Read Consumer prices are climbing and the inflation rate rose to its highest level in four months