Back in 2020, following the presidential election, Donald Trump “hired” Rudy Giuliani to travel around the country, fart his way through state hearings and make up some of the most odious lies ever. Rudy seriously criss-crossed the country, spreading variations of “the big lie” and trying to convince states to throw out thousands of ballots based on little more than MAGA vibes. As part of Rudy’s fart-soaked post-election blitz, he said a lot of sh-t about the Georgia election. Rudy, Kanye West and the Trump campaign targeted two particular women, election workers, for weeks if not months. The women sued. On Friday, the women won, and now Rudy will have to pay them $148 million.
A jury on Friday ordered Rudolph W. Giuliani to pay $148 million to two former Georgia election workers who said he had destroyed their reputations with lies that they tried to steal the 2020 election from Donald J. Trump.
Judge Beryl A. Howell of the Federal District Court in Washington had already ruled that Mr. Giuliani had defamed the two workers, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss. The jury had been asked to decide only on the amount of the damages.
The jury awarded Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss a combined $75 million in punitive damages. It also ordered Mr. Giuliani to pay compensatory damages of $16.2 million to Ms. Freeman and $16.9 million to Ms. Moss, as well as $20 million to each of them for emotional suffering.
“Today’s a good day,” Ms. Freeman told reporters after the jury delivered its determination. But she added that no amount of money would give her and her daughter back what they lost in the abuse they suffered after Mr. Giuliani falsely accused them of manipulating the vote count.
Mr. Giuliani, who helped lead Mr. Trump’s effort to remain in office after his defeat in the 2020 election but has endured a string of legal and financial setbacks since then, was defiant after the proceeding.
“I don’t regret a damn thing,” he said outside the courthouse, suggesting that he would appeal and that he stood by his assertions about the two women. He said that the torrent of attacks and threats the women received from Trump supporters were “abominable” and “deplorable,” but that he was not responsible for them. Outside the courthouse on Friday, Mr. Giuliani called the amount “absurd.”
Mr. Giuliani’s net worth is unknown because he refused to comply with the court’s requirement to provide that information. A lawyer familiar with his legal situation said after the verdict that Mr. Giuliani was likely to file for bankruptcy protection. But because the damages he owes Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss are considered an “intentional tort,” bankruptcy would not erase his liability, lawyers said.
[From The NY Times]
You have to understand, Rudy is SOOOOO broke right now. Trump didn’t even pay him for that humiliating display in 2020. Trump threw Rudy under the bus several months after the press conference at Four Seasons Total Landscaping. Not to mention, Rudy is also being sued for harassing and assaulting his former publicist, and she’s indicated that he’s broke too. Rudy used to be flush with cash, then he tied his wagon to the MAGA struggle-bus and now he’s going to be living in a repossessed cardboard box. I hope Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss get every last penny they can get from Rudy.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.
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