(DailyVantage.com) – E. Jean Carroll sleeps with a loaded shotgun she named “Aphrodite” after winning $88.3 million from Donald Trump in court, revealing the dangerous reality behind America’s most explosive #MeToo case.
Key Takeaways
- Carroll’s new memoir “Not My Type” details her legal battle against Trump, who was found liable for sexual abuse and defamation by two separate juries.
- Despite winning $88.3 million in damages, Carroll now lives with security concerns, sleeping with a shotgun and guard dogs due to threats from Trump supporters.
- The 80-year-old writer had to recreate her 1996 appearance in court to counter Trump’s “not my type” defense, highlighting society’s bias against older women.
- Carroll plans to use her legal winnings to fund women’s reproductive rights and democracy initiatives, turning her personal victory into political activism.
- A federal appeals court recently rejected Trump’s request for an en banc hearing, solidifying Carroll’s legal victory despite the cultural divide it exposed.
A Memoir of Justice Amidst Cultural Division
E. Jean Carroll’s newly released memoir “Not My Type” chronicles her extraordinary legal battle against former President Donald Trump and exposes the deep cultural divisions in America. Released in June 2025, the book provides an intimate look at Carroll’s journey from making a sexual assault allegation in 2019 about an incident she says occurred in 1996, to winning two landmark court cases against one of the most powerful men in the world. The title directly references Trump’s dismissive defense that Carroll was “not my type” – a claim the 80-year-old journalist methodically dismantles throughout her narrative.
The memoir arrives at a particularly charged moment in American politics, just months after Trump’s return to the White House and amid ongoing appeals of Carroll’s legal victories. Carroll’s story represents more than just a personal account; it has become a flashpoint in America’s cultural wars, with reactions to her case often falling along partisan lines. While some view her as a courageous truth-teller who held a powerful man accountable, others see her lawsuits as politically motivated attacks against a conservative leader.
Legal Victories and Trump’s Failed Appeals
Carroll’s legal journey resulted in two separate jury verdicts against Trump. In May 2023, a jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, awarding Carroll $5 million in damages. In January 2024, a second jury awarded her an additional $83.3 million in a separate defamation case. These verdicts represent one of the largest defamation judgments in American history and a rare instance of Trump facing significant legal consequences for his actions and statements.
Trump’s legal team has aggressively fought these verdicts. Most recently, on June 14, 2025, a federal appeals court rejected Trump’s request for an en banc hearing to reconsider the case. This latest defeat for Trump means the judgments against him remain intact, though his legal team has vowed to continue fighting all the way to the Supreme Court. The ongoing appeals process underscores how this case continues to reverberate through America’s legal and political systems even years after the initial allegations.
The Price of Victory: Living Under Threat
Despite her legal triumphs, Carroll’s memoir reveals the heavy personal cost of challenging a man with millions of devoted followers. In one of the book’s most striking revelations, Carroll describes how she now sleeps with a shotgun she named “Aphrodite” and keeps guard dogs for protection. The threats from Trump supporters have transformed her life, forcing her to implement security measures that most Americans would find unthinkable.
“I sleep with a loaded shotgun. Her name is Aphrodite,” Carroll writes in her memoir, according to reporting by The Independent. This stark admission highlights how America’s political polarization has real-world consequences for those who challenge powerful figures. Carroll’s need for armed self-protection represents a troubling reality about the state of public discourse in America, where legal victories can lead to personal danger.
Confronting Age and Appearance in Court
One of the most revealing aspects of Carroll’s memoir is her description of preparing for trial. She details how she worried the jury might not believe she was “attractive enough to assault” at the time of the alleged 1996 incident. This concern led her to meticulously recreate her appearance from that era for the trial, highlighting the additional burden female accusers often face in sexual assault cases – especially older women challenging powerful men.
Carroll’s attention to her appearance for the trial speaks volumes about societal biases regarding sexual assault. Trump’s “not my type” defense wasn’t just personally hurtful – it played into deeply entrenched misconceptions about sexual assault being primarily motivated by physical attraction rather than power and control. By addressing this issue head-on in her memoir, Carroll exposes how women’s credibility in sexual assault cases is often unfairly tied to their perceived attractiveness.
Plans for the $88.3 Million Award
Rather than keeping her substantial legal award for personal use, Carroll has announced plans to direct the money toward causes she believes in. She intends to use the $83 million judgment to fund women’s reproductive rights initiatives, democracy advocacy, and voting-rights organizations. This decision transforms her personal legal victory into a broader political statement, using Trump’s money to support causes he has often opposed.
“I’m going to give a lot of it away,” Carroll told reporters, as cited by The Independent. “Women’s rights, that’s the first thing. I would like very much to give a lot of money to abortion funds.” Her planned allocation of the funds represents a form of poetic justice for many of her supporters, who see her redirecting resources from a powerful conservative figure to causes championing women’s autonomy and democratic participation.
A Nation Divided by Her Story
Perhaps the most significant theme in Carroll’s memoir is her reflection on what her case reveals about America’s cultural divide. She notes that Trump’s 2024 election victory, despite the jury verdicts against him, exposed a “stunning” societal rift. “People don’t believe women when a powerful man says otherwise,” she observes in her book, highlighting how partisan loyalty often trumps legal findings in the court of public opinion.
The reception to Carroll’s memoir itself reflects this divide. Supporters praise her courage and resilience, with legal analyst Joyce Vance calling the book a “really good read” and describing Carroll as a “national treasure.” Meanwhile, Trump allies continue to dismiss her allegations as politically motivated attacks, despite the jury verdicts. This polarized response demonstrates how Carroll’s personal story has become inseparable from broader cultural battles about power, gender, and accountability in American society.
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