Giuliani is held in contempt of court in defamation case
NEW YORK — A federal judge held Rudy Giuliani in contempt of court Monday for failing to cooperate in the handover of $11 million of his personal assets to Georgia poll workers he falsely accused of helping to steal the 2020 presidential election.
Giuliani, a former mayor of New York City, has so far failed to turn over the bulk of his personal assets as a down payment on the $148 million judgment the poll workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Shaye Moss, won in a defamation lawsuit.
The judge, Lewis J. Liman of U.S. District Court in Manhattan, has yet to detail what specific sanctions Giuliani faces. But being held in contempt could possibly hinder the former mayor’s attempts to hang onto his condo in Palm Beach, Florida.
Giuliani’s assets include a 10-room apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan; a 1980 Mercedes-Benz convertible; a collection of 26 designer watches; and rare New York Yankees collectibles, the most valuable of which might be a signed and framed Joe DiMaggio jersey.
He is due back in federal court in Manhattan on Jan. 16 to argue that his Palm Beach condo should be exempt from the seizure, because it is his primary residence. But Giuliani has failed repeatedly to answer questions that could prove his residency.
The court ruled that Giuliani had obstructed the election workers’ attempts to determine Giuliani’s real primary residence, which for years had been the cooperative apartment on East 66th Street in Manhattan.
Liman, who has appeared frustrated at Giuliani’s shifting rationale for the omissions, ruled that his failure to comply will permit the court to draw negative conclusions about his Florida residency status, which could hobble his defense.
“The defendant has been attempting to run out the clock,” Liman said, adding that he was unmoved by the former mayor’s argument that he was overwhelmed with court requests, including charges in two criminal cases and several other civil actions. “The fact that he is a busy person and relied on others is not an excuse,” he said.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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