(Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Rudy Giuliani may not be trying to get himself thrown in jail. But if he were trying to get thrown in jail, it’s hard to see what he’d be doing differently.
After flagrantly refusing to comply with his discovery obligations in a defamation suit filed by Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, the two Atlanta poll workers he defamed four years ago, Judge Beryl Howell slapped him with a default judgment. Then jurors walloped America’s Mayor to the tune of $148 million. Giuliani spent the last 11 months trying to duck collections, including stumbling into and out of bankruptcy, but those efforts have run aground in the courtroom of Judge Lewis Liman of the Southern District of New York.
On October 22, Judge Liman appointed a receiver and ordered Giuliani to turn over his New York apartment and all his worldly possessions, save for a few contested personal items and a Florida condo, over which he’s attempting to claim a homestead exception. And at an October 30 status conference, Rudy’s lawyers represented to the court that the receivership property was being “held for delivery wherever Plaintiffs’ request.”
Wait for it …
“Defendant has yet to transfer any property into the Receivers’ custody,” the plaintiffs’ lawyers from Wilkie Farr wrote last night, adding that the parties had finally gotten access to the New York apartment last Thursday morning, only to discover that it had been stripped of all its furnishings. Giuliani’s attorney conceded that his client had moved much of the contents of the apartment to “The America First Warehouse” in Ronkonkoma, but insisted that “no property was removed in violation of any restraining order.”
This did not go over well with the court.
“In light of the status report provided by Plaintiffs on November 4, 2024, 81 Letter, filed by Wandrea’ Moss, Ruby Freeman, the Court orders that the status conference currently set to occur by telephone on Thursday, November 7, 2024 at 12 p.m. instead will occur in-person in Courtroom 15C at the 500 Pearl Street Courthouse,” Judge Liman wrote in a minute order, adding ominously that “The Defendant is ordered to appear in person.”
But no one has ever (or not recently) accused Giuliani of having a strong sense of self-preservation. So his counsel responded this morning with a letter requesting that Rudy be able to call in to the hearing from Florida since he has to broadcast on Mike Lindell’s Free Speech network.
Rudy’s gotta get on the air, Your Honor. Those 2024 poll workers aren’t gonna defame themselves!
It’s almost impossible to imagine how Rudy could make this worse. But he managed it!
That would be the 1980 Mercedes purportedly belonging to Lauren Bacall which was specifically placed under the control of the receiver and which Rudy’s lawyer promised he would “have our client sign documents transferring title, and then give you the keys.”
In the event, Judge Liman failed to be persuaded that Rudy needed to be in Florida because there are no microphones in the state of New York.
“No good cause has been provided,” he wrote in a second minute order. “Counsel and the Defendant shall appear as ordered on November 7, 2024 at 12 p.m. in Courtroom 15C at 500 Pearl Street.”
Freeman v. Giuliani [Docket via Court Listener]
Liz Dye lives in Baltimore where she produces the Law and Chaos substack and podcast.
