A judge has ordered Rudy Giuliani to appear in a New York courtroom on Thursday to explain why he missed a deadline to surrender his belongings as part of a $148 million defamation judgment. U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman issued the order late Monday after lawyers for Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss reported to the court that they went to Giuliani’s Manhattan apartment last week to see what assets were there, but found it had been cleared out.
Liman had set an Oct. 29 deadline for Giuliani to surrender many of his possessions to representatives for Freeman and Moss, but none of the items has been turned over yet, lawyers for the former election workers said Monday. These possessions include his $5 million Upper East Side apartment, a 1980 Mercedes once owned by movie star Lauren Bacall, and a variety of other belongings – from his television to a shirt signed by New York Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio to 26 luxury watches.
The judge originally scheduled a status conference by phone for Thursday, but changed it to an in-person hearing and specifically ordered Giuliani to appear in person in response to the report by Freeman and Moss’ attorneys. Ted Goodman, a spokesperson for Giuliani, said Tuesday that Giuliani has made his possessions available to Freeman and Moss. He did not directly answer questions about why no assets have been turned over so far.
Goodman stated, “Opposing counsel, acting either negligently or deliberately in a deceptive manner, are simply attempting to further bully and intimidate Mayor Giuliani until he is rendered penniless and homeless. This is just another way that they’ve weaponized our once-sacred justice system. It should concern each and every American.” Goodman added that Giuliani has put “a few items” in storage over the past year and “anything else removed was related to his two livestream programs that stream each and every weeknight across his social media platforms.”
Giuliani, the former New York City mayor and longtime ally of former President Donald Trump, was found liable for defamation for falsely accusing Freeman and Moss of ballot fraud during the 2020 election. Freeman and Moss said the lies led to death threats against them that made them fear for their lives. A jury awarded them $148 million last year, and they have been seeking to take possession of many of Giuliani’s assets in the court case in New York.
Aaron Nathan, an attorney for the former election workers, said in court documents that Giuliani and his lawyers have refused to answer basic questions about the location of most of the valuables subject to the court order. On Thursday, lawyers for the women were given access to Giuliani’s New York apartment in order to assess the transportation and storage needs for the property meant to be turned over. Nathan said the residence was already “substantially empty” when the group arrived and that they were told most of the contents of the apartment had been moved out about four weeks prior.
That includes the “vast majority” of the valuables known to be stored there, including art, sports memorabilia, and expensive furniture. Giuliani’s lawyers have argued – so far unsuccessfully – that Freeman and Moss should not be allowed to obtain and sell his belongings while his appeal is pending in a federal court in Washington.
