“If you award them what they are asking for, it will be the end of Mr. Giuliani,” attorney Joe Sibley said of his client, according to multiple reports.
Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City, could face significant financial consequences if he fails in an appeal of a defamation lawsuit in which he was ordered to pay $148 million to two Atlanta election workers whom he wrongly accused of trying to steal the 2020 election for Joe Biden.
The bombshell verdict delivered a major setback to the 79-year-old former mayor of New York, representing a form of validation for election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss. They claimed that Giuliani’s false accusations led to a barrage of threats that negatively impacted their lives. The verdict now has landed Giuliani and his finances in a major crisis.
Almost Death Penalty
The mother-daughter duo said that Giuliani’s false claims, accusing them of engaging in ballot fraud to manipulate the election against Trump, instilled fear in them. They claimed that the lies made them reluctant to leave their homes and hindered their ability to secure employment.
Giuliani’s lawyer argued in the Washington, DC courtroom on Thursday that the initial request for $43 million in damages from Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Andrea “Shaye” Moss, would be the “civil equivalent of the death penalty.”
“If you award them what they are asking for, it will be the end of Mr. Giuliani,” attorney Joe Sibley said of his client, according to multiple reports.
Following two days of deliberations, a jury in Washington, DC, ultimately granted the pair $75 million in punitive damages and an additional $20 million each for emotional distress.
