Nearly two dozen reporters and spectators settled into the 15th-floor Manhattan federal courtroom Thursday morning, expecting to hear what happened. Rudy Giuliani to testify in a trial that will determine whether he gets to keep his $3.5 million Florida condo and three World Series rings.
Except the former New York City mayor never showed up.
Giuliani was expected to take the stand and defend against the seizure of his valuables as part of a $148 million defamation judgment awarded to two Georgia election workers, whom the former mayor has repeatedly claimed helped steal the 2020 election.
But after hours of confusion over his absence, both sides informally announced that the case had been tentatively settled and that Giuliani would keep his home and sports memorabilia.
The courtroom initially buzzed with anticipation for some drama, but quickly became quiet when Giuliani failed to show up and lawyers walked in and out of the judge. Louis J. LehmanRooms. An hour later, Lyman’s brother, a Hollywood film director, came doug lyman, Presumably he was there to capture the scene himself, and he gave up and left his front row seat.
The search for clues to Giuliani’s whereabouts became comical after a video posted to his X account showed his little dog, Vinnie, wearing a bow tie and…Hanging out” in Donald TrumpMar-a-Lago Resort at Mar-a-Lago while Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” plays in the background.
Pressed for answers by a group of confused attendees, Giuliani’s defense attorney only replied “soon” before storming out of the room with an AirPod in one ear, whispering into the phone with his hand over his mouth.
At about 1:15 p.m., more than four hours after the trial began, a courtroom official finally told the crowd to go home, vaguely asking reporters to monitor the official docket for updates. Minutes later, the mystery was solved: Giuliani had Reaching a preliminary settlement agreement With two poll workers, Robbie Freeman and mousse tea, That would allow him to keep his assets.
“I have reached a resolution to the litigation with Plaintiffs that will result in satisfaction of Plaintiffs’ judgment. This resolution does not involve an admission of liability or wrongdoing by any of the parties,” Giuliani said. Statement published on X. “I am satisfied and have no complaints regarding our outcome. I was able to keep my New York co-op, Florida condos, and all my personal belongings.
He added: “No one deserves to be threatened, harassed or intimidated. This lawsuit affected all parties. This entire episode was unfortunate. The plaintiffs and I have agreed not to speak about each other in any defamatory way, and I urge others to do the same. The specific details of the settlement remain unclear.
The settlement marked a somewhat frustrating end to Moss and Freeman’s courtroom battles to get the rest of their multimillion-dollar judgment from Giuliani after he was found guilty of defaming them in 2023.
Last week alone, Giuliani was held in contempt of court New York and Washington After failing to hand over assets worth millions of dollars as part of the case. So far, the 80-year-old fired lawyer has handed over his $6 million in New York City apartmentAnd several luxury watches and his 1980 Mercedes-Benz convertible that was owned by Lauren Bacall (whom he owned He drove to the polls in Florida last election day).
Giuliani was expected to argue Thursday that his New York apartment is his primary residence and therefore cannot be extradited. daughter, andrew giuliani, He was scheduled to testify that the three World Series rings — personally made for his father after the New York Yankees won in 1996, 1999 and 2000 — were given to him by the former mayor nearly seven years ago.
“The last four years have been a living nightmare. We have fought to clear our names, restore our reputations and prove that we did nothing wrong,” Freeman and Moss said in a statement. “Today is a major milestone in our journey. We have come to an agreement and can now move on with our lives. We agreed to let Mr. Giuliani keep his assets in exchange for compensation and his promise never to defame us.
