DOJ probes Trump accuser E Jean Carroll over ‘outside funding’ claims and lies in testimony
WASHINGTON, DC: Former magazine columnist E Jean Carroll is reportedly under investigation by the US Department of Justice over testimony she gave during civil lawsuits against President Donald Trump, according to multiple media reports.
CNN and the New York Times reported that federal prosecutors are examining whether Carroll committed perjury during a 2022 deposition in which she said she had not received outside financial support for her legal cases against Trump.
The investigation reportedly centers on later disclosures that some legal fees and expenses had been covered by a nonprofit linked to billionaire LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman.
DOJ investigates E Jean Carroll testimony
According to reports, prosecutors are reviewing statements Carroll made during a videotaped deposition conducted in 2022 as part of her lawsuits against Trump.
During questioning by then-Trump attorney Alina Habba, Carroll reportedly stated that no outside parties were funding her litigation.
However, ahead of trial, Carroll’s legal team informed the court and Trump’s lawyers that legal expenses had partially been paid through a nonprofit funded by Reid Hoffman.
Trump’s attorneys argued at the time that the funding arrangement had not been properly disclosed and claimed it raised questions about Carroll’s credibility. Carroll’s lawyers said she had never met or communicated with anyone connected to the nonprofit.
A federal judge later allowed Trump’s legal team to question Carroll again in a second deposition. In 2024, a three-judge federal appeals court panel dismissed claims that Carroll had lied during her testimony.
The reported inquiry comes years after Carroll accused Trump of misconduct in a New York department store in the mid-1990s. Trump denied the allegations, and two juries later found him liable in civil cases, awarding Carroll millions of dollars in damages.
Trump, E Jean Carroll cases continue in court
Carroll first publicly accused Trump in 2019, alleging he behaved inappropriately toward her inside a Manhattan department store decades earlier. Trump denied the allegation and repeatedly said Carroll fabricated the claims.
She later filed civil lawsuits accusing Trump of inappropriate misconduct and defamation. In 2023, a jury awarded Carroll $5 million in damages after finding Trump liable for both accusations.
In a separate 2024 case, another jury ordered Trump to pay $83.3 million in damages tied to additional defamatory statements.
Trump has appealed both judgments, and the cases remain tied up in ongoing legal proceedings.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has reportedly recused himself from the investigation because he previously represented Trump in appeals related to Carroll’s civil cases.
The inquiry is reportedly being handled by federal prosecutors in Chicago.
