CNN
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A federal judge on Tuesday He ordered former Donald Trump lawyer and New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani to turn over everything Valuable possessions and his Manhattan penthouse apartment are controlled by Ruby Freeman and Shay Moss, the Georgia election workers he defamed and now owes him $150 million.
Judge Louis Liman of federal court in Manhattan said Giuliani must turn over his interest in the property to the women within seven days, putting them under receivership control. Judge’s turnover order of luxury items is quick and easy, but the penthouse apartment will be out of control so Freeman and Moss can sell it for millions of dollars.
Giuliani said the Trump campaign still owes him about $2 million in legal fees after the women who counted Georgia ballots after the 2020 election, a judge ruled.
In addition to the Trump campaign fee and New York apartment, Giuliani will also have to turn over a collection of watches, including those given to him by European presidents after the September 11, 2001 attacks; a signed Joe DiMaggio jersey and other sports memorabilia; and a 1980 Mercedes once owned by Hollywood star Lauren Bacall. In addition, the judge ordered Giuliani to replace his television, furniture and jewelry.
Liman has yet to decide whether Giuliani can keep a Palm Beach, Florida condominium he owns or the four New York Yankees World Series rings he owns, which Giuliani’s son contends his father gave him.
Michael Gottlieb, an attorney for Freeman and Moss, told CNN’s Erin Burnett on “Outfront” that the judge’s order “is a necessary and important step to begin to recover some of what was taken from our clients.”
“I think today’s verdict is an example of how the justice system, even if it takes some time and determination, the courage of people like Ruby Freeman and Shay Moss to hold people in power to account for their kind of wrongdoing,” he said.
A spokeswoman for Giuliani did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The judge said he would use the receivership to facilitate the transfer of Giuliani’s New York property to the women because of the unique nature of the property. One of the advantages of using the legal mechanism, he noted, is that it is “well suited to working with auction houses and brokers such as Sotheby’s and Christie’s to ensure that the maximum sale value (of the property) is realized”.
The defamation case against Giuliani — and recent moves to enforce the ruling — is an example of how lawyers who aided Trump’s election-disruption schemes have faced the consequences of those actions, even as criminal cases against Trump and his associates have slowed. to gain traction.
Hear a list of Giuliani’s assets that could now be seized as a result of the judge’s decision
Giuliani, who previously served as the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, has also lost his law license over how he handled election fraud claims and professional disciplinary actions against other former Trump lawyers. Right-wing news outlets, including Fox News, have had to settle lawsuits brought by the voting machine company and its former executive under other election conspiracy theories.
Last December, a federal jury ordered Giuliani to pay nearly $150 million for his lies about Freeman and Moss, and the pair is working to collect the money. He was ordered to pay $16,171,000 to Freeman for defamation, $16,998,000 to Moss for defamation, $20 million to each woman for emotional distress and a total of $75 million in punitive damages.
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Giuliani pleaded guilty last year to libel charges against Freeman and Moss for failing to respond to parts of their lawsuit. They said in their lawsuit that they and their daughter suffered emotional and reputational harm and that their safety was at risk after Giuliani isolated them when Giuliani, who worked as an election worker in Georgia, made false allegations of ballot fraud. 2020 election.
A judge is scheduled to hear about the Florida property next Monday.
CNN’s Tierney Sneed, Devan Cole and Piper Hudspeth Blackburn contributed to this report.
This story has been updated with additional updates.
