OAN’s Abril Elfi
3:18 PM – Wednesday, August 30, 2023
Former politician and attorney Rudy Giuliani has lost a defamation lawsuit filed by two Georgia election staffers after he failed to produce material requested in subpoenas.
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A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that the former New York City mayor was liable in a defamation lawsuit filed by the election workers who claim that they were falsely accused of fraud, ruling that Giuliani only gave “lip service” to comply with his legal obligations while attempting to portray himself as the victim in the case.
Due to Giuliani’s alleged failure to perform his duty as a defendant by providing information sought by poll workers Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea’ ArShaye Moss, as part of the lawsuit, United States District Judge Beryl Howell issued the sentence.
“Perhaps he has made the calculation that his overall litigation risks are minimized by not complying with his discovery obligations in this case,” Howell wrote. “Whatever the reason, obligations are case specific and withholding required discovery in this case has consequences.”
Following the 2020 election, Giuliani testified to a Georgia Senate committee that election workers were counting “suitcases” of illegal ballots in the middle of the night at the State Farm Arena counting site, displaying footage that he claimed was the “smoking gun,” proving his claims of fraud.
“The video makes it clear,” Giuliani told the press. “They took ballots from under a table and counted them in the middle of the night. This is what they were doing all throughout the country. Luckily, there is now a tape of it.”
Giuliani continued to call out the mother and daughter, accusing them of “quite obviously surreptitiously passing around USB ports as if they were vials of heroin or cocaine,” as well as stating that their homes should have been searched for evidence of ballots and USB ports.
Moss and Freeman are seeking specific monetary damages after claiming that they have suffered emotional loss and reputational loss, as well as having their safety jeopardized as a result of Giuliani’s fraudulent claims of ballot manipulation in Georgia during the 2020 election.
Additionally, the two claimed that they had to move out of their home due to the former mayor’s assertion since “the FBI said it wasn’t safe,” after allegedly receiving a plethora of death threats.
Giuliani has already been fined nearly $90,000 for Freeman and Moss’ legal bills in the case, and Howell believes the former New York mayor could face additional fines.
Howell later said that a trial regarding the amount of damages for which Giuliani will be held responsible has been scheduled for later this year, or early in 2024.
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By: OAN
