The rumour mill ground to a screeching halt on Thursday when US Attorney Andrew Boutros stepped up to clear the air. He issued a firm statement confirming that his office in Chicago has never opened a criminal investigation into E Jean Carroll. This statement came after chatter started circulating that the Justice Department was looking into whether the writer committed perjury during her civil trials against Donald Trump.
For those who haven't been glued to the courtroom drama, E Jean Carroll is the former magazine columnist who took the former president to court over allegations of sexual abuse and defamation. Her legal battles were long, loud, and incredibly expensive. In May 2023, a jury determined that Donald Trump had sexually abused her, though they stopped short of calling it rape. By January 2024, another jury slapped him with a massive $83.3 million penalty for defaming her. E Jean Carroll's lawyer, Robbie Kaplan, was notably absent from comments following the US Attorney's statement, instead choosing to remain silent on the matter.
The perjury theory
The talk of a criminal probe allegedly hinged on a 2022 deposition where E Jean Carroll claimed she didn't receive any outside financial help for her lawsuits. Later on, it came to light that LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman had actually contributed to covering some of her legal costs. The argument floating around was that this inconsistency amounted to lying under oath, or perjury, which is a serious offense in the American justice system. The Justice Department's investigation into this supposed discrepancy was based on this 2022 deposition.
But the courts have already weighed in on this supposed discrepancy. Back in 2024, an appeals court ruled that E Jean Carroll likely just forgot about the smaller funding details when she was grilled in that 2022 deposition. The court didn't see the outside funding as a deliberate attempt to deceive anyone. It seems the legal system had already decided this wasn't a crime, even before the Chicago office weighed in.
The players in the room
Andrew Boutros, the man who put the rumour to bed, is a seasoned operator in the federal legal world. He sits at the top of the Chicago US Attorney's Office, a role that commands significant influence in federal criminal matters. His direct denial is intended to stop the wild speculation that often follows legal clashes involving someone as polarizing as Donald Trump. Boutros's statement was straightforward and to the point, leaving no room for misinterpretation.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department has seen some internal shuffling. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has stepped into the spotlight, having recently taken the reins from Pam Bondi. However, Todd Blanche has been forced to step back from this particular matter, as he actually served as one of Donald Trump's personal lawyers during the Carroll appeals. It’s the kind of complex web of connections that makes American legal stories look like a high-stakes drama.
The Chicago US Attorney's Office can confirm that it has not opened and has never opened a criminal investigation into E Jean Carroll.
A complex and ongoing battle
Despite this confirmation, the legal war is far from over. Donald Trump continues to fight the rulings through the appeals process, keeping his lawyers busy and the headlines spinning. For E Jean Carroll, her team's silence on the matter suggests they are letting the official denial do the heavy lifting.
When you see these multi-million dollar legal fights, it’s easy to forget that at the heart of it, it's just people arguing over testimonies and bank transfers. Whether it’s the $116.2 million in damages or the question of who paid for which lawyer, the stakes remain high for everyone involved. The threat of a criminal perjury case against the writer is off the table, leaving the civil disputes as the only battleground left.