NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge is indicating that Rudy Giuliani’s contempt hearing this Friday may not end well for the former New York City mayor and former personal attorney to President-elect Donald Trump, as two Georgia election workers try to collect a fine. A $148 million libel award they won against him.
Judge Lewis J. Liman in Manhattan issued an order Friday dismissing what he described as attempts by Giuliani and his attorney to avoid providing information to the election workers’ lawyers.
And he said litigants should be ready at the contempt hearing to explain why he shouldn’t grant a request from attorneys for the two election workers that he would draw adverse inferences from evidence in the case that targeted Giuliani’s Palm condominium Beach, Florida, would be in danger. of surrender to satisfy the libel penalty.
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The judge also said he may rule on the contempt request during the hearing.
Giuliani has maintained that the Palm Beach estate is now his personal home and should be protected from the judgment. He is scheduled to be arraigned before Liman on Jan. 16 for the disposition of his Florida residence and World Series rings.
Lawyers for the election workers filed the contempt petition after saying Giuliani failed to turn over a lease on his Manhattan apartment, a Mercedes, several watches and jewelry, a signed Joe DiMaggio jersey and other baseball moments. The judge ordered Giuliani to hand over the items in October.
A request for comment was sent to the attorney for Giuliani, who was scheduled to be deposed on Friday.
In October, Liman ordered Giuliani to hand over many of his prized possessions to the pollsters. Giuliani’s lawyers have predicted that Giuliani will ultimately win custody of the items on appeal.
The contempt hearing follows a controversial hearing in November in which Giuliani, a former federal prosecutor, became angry with the judge and said Liman treated him unfairly.
Giuliani was found liable last year for defaming two Georgia poll workers by falsely accusing them of tampering with ballots during the 2020 presidential election.
The women said they received death threats after Giuliani falsely claimed they had smuggled in ballots in suitcases, counted the ballots multiple times and tampered with voting machines.
