Current:Home > StocksGiuliani ordered to immediately pay $146 million to Georgia election workers he defamed -Wealth Pursuit Network
Giuliani ordered to immediately pay $146 million to Georgia election workers he defamed
View
Date:2025-04-12 09:29:22
Rudy Giuliani must immediately pay $146 million to two Georgia election workers he defamed, with a federal judge suggesting the former New York mayor may have been dishonest about his finances and expressing concern he might not comply with the judgment.
The latest twist in the defamation case comes just days after Giuliani was ordered to pay $146 million to the two women, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea "Shaye" Moss. Giuliani had falsely claimed in the wake of the 2020 presidential election that they engaged in a fake ballot processing scheme while they served as election workers.
In a scathing ruling on Wednesday, Judge Beryl Howell questioned Giuliani's objections that he couldn't afford to pay a large monetary award. "Such claims of Giuliani's 'financial difficulties' — no matter how many times repeated or publicly disseminated and duly reported in the media — are difficult to square with the fact that Giuliani affords a spokesperson, who accompanied him daily to trial," Howell wrote.
The damage award was originally set at $148 million, but Howell later reduced it to $145,969,000 because of an earlier settlement Freeman and Moss struck with right-wing cable news channel OAN.
Before the jury went into deliberations last week, Giuliani's attorney had claimed that paying the $48 million in damages initially requested by Freeman and Moss "will be the end" of him financially. Nevertheless, the jury came back with an award that was $100 million higher than they had sought.
Giuliani's attorney, Joe Sibley, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Despite the jury's decision, Giuliani had continued to air his election conspiracy theories targeting the two women. Three days after the defamation case concluded, Freeman and Shaye Moss filed a new complaint asking the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to permanently bar Giuliani from "persisting in his defamatory campaign" against them.
In the Wednesday ruling, Howell noted that she was waiving the standard 30-day waiting period to collect on the judgment. "Notably, though he regularly speaks publicly about this case, Giuliani has never denied that he has taken steps to hide his assets from judgment creditors, and has offered no affirmative pledge that he will take no steps to do so, including in the next 30 days," she noted.
Giuliani's net worth
About 15 years ago, the former public servant's net worth estimated at more than $50 million, with $15 million of that total from his business activities, including his work with lobbying firm Giuliani Partners.
But signs suggest Giuliani's wealth has dropped since then. For one, he's turned to hawking 9/11 shirts for $911 and at one point was selling video messages on Cameo for $325 a pop. His page on the site says Giuliani is no longer available.
Giuliani also faces other financial challenges. His long-term attorney is suing him, alleging the former mayor owes him almost $1.4 million in legal fees. Giuliani also put his Manhattan apartment up for sale earlier this year for $6.5 million, although the price has since dropped to $6.1 million.
Editor's note: This story and headline have been updated to clarify the reduction in the amount due to $146 million.
- In:
- Rudy Giuliani
Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.
TwitterveryGood! (232)
Related
- Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
- Ice Spice Reveals Where She Stands With Matty Healy After His Controversial Comments
- Trump won’t try to move Georgia case to federal court after judge rejected similar bid by Meadows
- Back for more? Taylor Swift expected to watch Travis Kelce, Chiefs play Jets, per report
- What were Tom Selleck's juicy final 'Blue Bloods' words in Reagan family
- Homes unaffordable in 99% of nation for average American
- Florida teen who was struck by lightning while hunting with her dad has died
- Novelist Murakami hosts Japanese ghost story reading ahead of Nobel Prize announcements
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Blinken meets Indian foreign minister as row between India and Canada simmers
Ranking
- The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
- Evan Gershkovich remains detained in Russian prison 6 months later
- Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy will miss two months after back surgery
- Back for more? Taylor Swift expected to watch Travis Kelce, Chiefs play Jets, per report
- McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
- Evan Gershkovich remains detained in Russian prison 6 months later
- NFL Week 4 picks: Do Lions or Pack claim first place? Dolphins, Bills meet in huge clash.
- Why Jessie James Decker Has the Best Response for Her Haters
Recommendation
This was the average Social Security benefit in 2004, and here's what it is now
Yelp sues Texas to keep crisis pregnancy center description labels
Arrest warrants issued for Baton Rouge police officers in the BRPD Street Crimes Unit
Hawaii Army base under lockdown after man flees with handgun; no shots fired
Nearly half of US teens are online ‘constantly,’ Pew report finds
'Kill Black people': Elon Musk's Tesla sued for racial abuse at electric vehicle plant
The Best Beauty Advent Calendars of 2023: Lookfantastic, Charlotte Tilbury, Revolve & More
She received chemo in two states. Why did it cost so much more in Alaska?