Rudy Giuliani has been ordered to pay two Georgia election workers a total of $148 million for spreading defamatory conspiracy theories about them in the aftermath of the 2020 election.
The eight-person jury reached the decision unanimously on Friday after deliberating for two days. The jury found Giuliani owes Wandrea ArShaye “Shaye” Moss and her mother Ruby Freeman $16,998,000 and $16,171,000, respectively, for defamation; $20 million a piece for emotional distress; and $75 million total in punitive damages. The payouts total over $148 million.
Moss and Freeman sued Giuliani in December of last year, alleging that the attorney had falsely accused them of manipulating the 2020 presidential vote in Georgia. In August, Giuliani was found liable for spreading false claims about Moss and Freeman. This week’s trial focused solely on the amount of money the former New York mayor and Trump attorney owed the two women.
During the trial, both women testified about the extent to which the conspiracies spread by Giuliani upended their lives and endangered their safety. On Tuesday, Moss described running to her hairdresser and begging her to help change her appearance after realizing that she’d become the target of a right-wing mob egged on by Giuliani. She told the court that the threats and harassment caused her to fear for her life.
On Wednesday, Freeman took the stand and read out a slew of messages and social media posts she received threatening herself and her daughter. “I hope the Federal government hangs you and your daughter from the Capitol dome you treasonous piece of shit!” one message read. “I pray that I will be sitting close enough to hear your necks snap.”
During Freeman’s emotional testimony, a recording of former President Donald Trump’s phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was played for the court. While the call is infamous for containing Trump’s request that Raffensperger “find” him the votes necessary to win Georgia, what’s less known is that Trump referenced Freeman 18 times during the conversation. The former president called Freeman a “professional vote scammer,” and accused her of being a “known political operative” who had “stuffed the ballot boxes.” Freeman and Moss’ attorneys pointed out that Trump’s language in the call about Freeman echoed strategic post-election messaging crafted by Giuliani’s team.
“My life is just messed up. It’s really messed up all because somebody put me on blast, just tweet my name out to their millions of followers,” Freeman said.
In closing arguments, Moss and Freeman’s attorney Michael Gottlieb reiterated that Giuliani “has no right to offer defenseless civil servants up to a virtual mob in order to overturn an election.”
“The cost that has [been] imposed on Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss, on all those he has deceived, and to the public confidence in our democracy are incalculable,” Gottlieb said.
Earlier this week Giuliani potentially exposed himself to another defamation lawsuit after telling reporters that he does not regret his past claims about the two women. “I told the truth. They were engaged in changing votes,” Giuliani said. Despite having promised to take the stand himself to “give the whole story,” and prove “everything I said about them was true,” Giuliani backed out of giving public testimony on Thursday, likely on the advice of his already exhausted attorney.
During his closing arguments, Giuliani’s lawyer, Joseph Sibley, attempted to convince the jury to ignore all of that.
“Rudy Giuliani’s a good man,” Sibley said. “He hasn’t exactly helped himself with some of the things that have happened in the last few days.”
And Giuliani needs all the help he can get. Aside from the civil litigation brought forth by Moss and Freeman, Giuliani is swimming in a myriad of lawsuits, investigations, and litigation. These include a criminal indictment by Fulton County prosecutors in Georgia alleging his involvement in a racketeering scheme to overturn the 2020 election, Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, disbarment proceedings, and sexual assault allegations. Even Giuliani’s former attorneys are suing him over unpaid legal bills.
It’s understandable why Sibley argued in court that the damages granted to Moss and Freeman would “be the end of Mr. Giuliani,” but he’s wrong. Moss and Freeman’s successful efforts to hold Giuliani to account are not the end — they’re just the beginning.
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