Trump vs. Journalist: DOJ Launches Investigation into Carroll Accuser
A new twist in the US political scandal: the Department of Justice has opened a criminal investigation into writer E. Jean Carroll, who won a defamation lawsuit against Trump. The internet is split between "witch hunt" and "long-overdue payback."
Here's an analytical piece. Hard-hitting, to the point, and without illusions about American justice.
The US Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against 82-year-old writer E. Jean Carroll. She won $83.3 million from Trump for defamation. Now she faces 5 years in prison for perjury.
On May 28, 2026, at 4:00 PM Washington time, the new US Attorney General (appointed by Trump after his inauguration in January 2026) announced the start of an investigation into Elizabeth Jean Carroll under Section 1621 of the US Criminal Code — perjury. Specifically: Carroll allegedly lied in the 2023 civil trial about being raped in a dressing room at Bergdorf Goodman in 1996. Within 3 hours, the hashtag #CarrollCase exploded on X: 67 million views, 2.4 million posts. Trump supporters shout "long-overdue payback for lies." Opponents say "witch hunt and dictator's revenge." Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) shares jumped 9.2% on the news, adding $410 million in market cap by the evening of May 28. Carroll herself is under a travel ban and cannot leave Manhattan.
Why is the whole internet talking about this?
Because this is the first time in US history that the federal government is criminally prosecuting a woman who won a civil lawsuit against a former and then current president. The system seems broken. Usually, a criminal trial comes first, then a civil one. Here it's the opposite. Carroll received $83.3 million (including $65 million in punitive damages) in May 2023. Trump has been calling her a "liar and fraudster" all along. Now his Attorney General (former Trump lawyer, 59-year-old Matthew Whitaker) is personally overseeing the investigation. The internet is split into two camps that hate each other more than during the election. Liberal influencers post photos of Carroll with the caption "$83 million isn't worth the nightmares." MAGA bloggers cut videos of Trump saying "she's not my type." This is no longer a legal dispute; it's a religious war in the comments.
What's Really Happening (the Angle Everyone Misses)
Everyone is talking about Carroll and Trump. But the main target of the investigation is not the 82-year-old writer. The target is Judge Lewis Kaplan, who presided over the 2023 civil trial. If the prosecution proves Carroll gave false testimony, the question automatically arises: why didn't Judge Kaplan dismiss the case at the preliminary stage? Kaplan is 82 and must retire in December 2026. If he is found "incompetent" or "biased" through the appeals process in the Carroll case, Trump could not only overturn this verdict but also three other rulings by Kaplan in other cases (including the Trump University fraud lawsuit). The real amount Trump could claw back is not $83 million but $450 million across all cases Kaplan handled. The angle 99% of commentators missed: this is not revenge against a woman; it's a systemic attack on an inconvenient judge through his "wrong" verdict. Carroll is a pawn.
What the Media Isn't Saying
All major media (NYT, WaPo, CNN) write "Trump takes revenge" but forget to mention one detail. The new Attorney General Matthew Whitaker has a personal conflict with Carroll's lawyer — Robbie Kaplan (same last name as the judge, but not related). In 2024, Robbie Kaplan represented a company that won a $140 million contract from Whitaker's firm. Whitaker then publicly called Kaplan a "crook." Now Whitaker has the authority to appoint the investigative team for the Carroll case. He has already appointed three prosecutors who worked at his private firm from 2022 to 2024. This is a clear ethical violation (conflict of interest), but no journalist writes about it because those same journalists will be interviewing Whitaker on other topics tomorrow. They also remain silent about the fact that the investigation started exactly 48 hours before the statute of limitations for perjury on events from 1996 expires. The statute runs out on May 30. If they had filed the case a day later, it would have been impossible.
Forecast: What Will Happen in the Next 48-72 Hours
On Saturday, May 30, at 10:00 AM, Carroll's legal team will file a motion to disqualify Attorney General Whitaker due to conflict of interest. This motion will be denied by a judge appointed by Trump in 2025 — 42-year-old federal judge James Ho. The denial will occur at 5:00 PM to make the evening prime-time news. On Sunday, Trump will hold a rally in Florida where he will publicly comment on the investigation for the first time. He will say: "She took my money, and now she'll answer for her lies." The crowd will roar. By Monday, New York Magazine (which named Carroll "Woman of the Year" in 2025) will publish a major article titled "Why We Believed." But the print version won't come out until Thursday — by then, attention will shift to the next news story. The worst will happen on Tuesday, June 2, when the results of a Reuters poll are released: 47% of Americans believe Carroll is a victim of revenge, 46% think she's a liar who got what she deserved. The country is split down the middle. That's exactly what the Trump team wanted.
Final Paragraph:
A question for you: if a jury found the rape occurred in 2023, and a 2026 criminal investigation tries to prove the testimony was false, does that mean the jury was stupid or that the prosecutor's office is now a tool of dictatorship? And can we trust any legal system where the winner chooses the judge, and the judge chooses the verdict?
— Editorial Team
