Politics- New filings from E. Jean Carroll's case against Donald Trump reveal her team sought to dismiss a juror.
- The juror said he gets his news from Tim Pool, a pro-Trump right-wing podcaster.
Newly unsealed court documents from E. Jean Carroll's sexual abuse case against former President Donald Trump revealed that Trump's team successfully fought to keep a juror who listened to a pro-Trump podcast — only for Trump to lambast the entire jury when the case did not go his way.
On April 30, Carroll's team moved to dismiss Juror No. 77, arguing the juror showed a bias, on the grounds that he considered pro-Trump podcaster Tim Pool's show to be "balanced," according to court documents first reported on by Politico.
Trump's team pushed back in a filing, arguing that it was unfair to single out or insinuate political affiliation — which is exactly what Trump did to the jury after they found him liable for the sexual abuse and defamation of Caroll.
In the April filing, Carroll's attorney wrote: "A juror who views Pool's podcast in that way may subjectively believe that he has no relevant bias, but has just as certainly confirmed that he does."
"No person capable of deciding this case fairly and impartially would seek out only Pool's content, rely on YouTube to promote other content based on Pool's podcast, and maintain that Pool's commentary is indeed 'middle' and 'balanced,'" the attorney continued.
Trump's lawyer Joe Tacopina quipped in an opposition filing days later that "a juror's political affiliation is not grounds for dismissal." The juror was ultimately allowed to stay on after a judge rejected the request from Carroll's team, according to Politico.
Caroll brought a civil defamation and sexual assault lawsuit against Trump in November 2022, in part through New York's Adult Survivors Act. The trial kicked off on April 25 and lasted two weeks, ending Tuesday. The Manhattan jury found Trump liable for sexually abusing Caroll in 1996 in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room and for defaming her. The jury did not find that Trump had raped Carroll.
Carroll was awarded $5 million in damages for the sexual abuse and defamation claims. Juror No. 77 was among the nine jurors who unanimously found Trump was liable for the sexual abuse and defamation of Carroll.
After the verdict, Trump again denied any wrongdoing and has claimed he doesn't even know Carroll. He also accused everyone involved in the case of being biased against him — which the court documents and revelations about Juror No. 77 seem to contradict.
"What else can you expect from a Trump-hating, Clinton-appointed judge, who went out of his way to make sure that the result was as negative as it could possibly be, speaking to, and in control of, a jury from an anti-Trump area which is probably the worst place in the U.S. for me to get a fair 'trial,'" Trump ranted in a Truth Social post shortly after the verdict was announced.
Trump has also accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's business fraud investigation against him — which has led to a 34-count grand jury indictment — of being politically tainted. And at a CNN town hall the day after the verdict was announced, Trump doubled down on the claim that the odds were stacked against him in the Carroll trial.
"In New York City you can't get a fair trial," Trump repeated at the town hall on Wednesday.
Attorneys for Carroll and Trump did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment. Tim Pool did not immediately return Insider's request for comment.