Rudy Giuliani fails to pay more than $132,000 in penalties in defamation lawsuit filed by two Georgia election officials

CNN
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Rudy Giuliani has failed to pay more than $132,000 in penalties against him for failing to respond to parts of a lawsuit filed by two Georgia election workers, according to a court filing.

It’s the latest challenge for the former New York mayor as he deals with the fallout from his work for Donald Trump after the 2020 election.

Giuliani has struggled to pay his legal bills in recent months, particularly related to the lawsuit of Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, a mother and daughter he defamed.

The $132,856 bill represents only a small portion of the financial burden Giuliani is currently carrying, largely due to his ongoing legal problems, and it’s an issue he’s been aware of for several weeks.

But a court filing confirmed Thursday that Giuliani did not pay the amount to Moss and Freeman, which a judge ordered to offset some of their attorney fees.

“As of the date of this filing, Defendant Giuliani has not taken any of the actions, nor caused the Giuliani Companies to take any of the actions ordered in the Sanctions Order,” lawyers for Moss and Freeman. according to the file. “The plaintiffs are considering what additional measures may be appropriate. »

Giuliani’s failure to respond to subpoenas for records in Moss and Freeman’s lawsuit led to the sanctioned amount, which now accrues interest as he continues to fail to pay. Still, that’s not the end of the bills for Giuliani in this case. He will face a trial for damages in that case before a jury in December.

Just days ago, he faced a new lawsuit from his former lawyer for $1.3 million in unpaid legal fees, and other lawsuits against him are pending.

Giuliani lost the August defamation lawsuit filed against him by two Georgia election officials after he failed to provide information requested in subpoenas.

In court in recent weeks, Giuliani said he could no longer dispute that he made false and defamatory statements about Freeman and Moss.

Both men are seeking unspecified damages after saying they suffered emotional harm and reputational harm, as well as having their safety put at risk, after Giuliani singled them out when he made false allegations ballot tampering in Georgia after the 2020 election.

Giuliani’s statements about them, which Freeman and Moss say are false, included calling them criminal ballot-stuffing conspirators. Giuliani also drew attention to a video of them after the election, which was first released by the Trump campaign and showed part of a security tape of vote counting in Atlanta. On social media, his podcast and other shows, Giuliani said the video showed suitcases stuffed with ballots, when it captured nothing other than the normal process of voting, according to the defamation lawsuit and a state investigation.

Georgian election officials have refuted Giuliani’s accusations of fraud in the vote count.