Giuliani ordered to immediately pay $146 million to Georgia election workers he defamed

Rudy Giuliani must immediately pay $146 million to two Georgia election workers he defamed, with a federal judge suggesting the former New York mayor may have been dishonest about his finances and expressing concern he might not comply with the judgment.

The latest twist in the defamation case comes just days after Giuliani was ordered to pay $146 million to the two women, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea "Shaye" Moss. Giuliani had falsely claimed in the wake of the 2020 presidential election that they engaged in a fake ballot processing scheme while they served as election workers. 

In a scathing ruling on Wednesday, Judge Beryl Howell questioned Giuliani's objections that he couldn't afford to pay a large monetary award. "Such claims of Giuliani's 'financial difficulties' — no matter how many times repeated or publicly disseminated and duly reported in the media — are difficult to square with the fact that Giuliani affords a spokesperson, who accompanied him daily to trial," Howell wrote. 

The damage award was originally set at $148 million, but Howell later reduced it to $145,969,000 because of an earlier settlement Freeman and Moss struck with right-wing cable news channel OAN.

Before the jury went into deliberations last week, Giuliani's attorney had claimed that paying the $48 million in damages initially requested by Freeman and Moss "will be the end" of him financially. Nevertheless, the jury came back with an award that was $100 million higher than they had sought. 

Giuliani's attorney, Joe Sibley, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Despite the jury's decision, Giuliani had continued to air his election conspiracy theories targeting the two women. Three days after the defamation case concluded, Freeman and Shaye Moss filed a new complaint asking the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to permanently bar Giuliani from "persisting in his defamatory campaign" against them.

In the Wednesday ruling, Howell noted that she was waiving the standard 30-day waiting period to collect on the judgment. "Notably, though he regularly speaks publicly about this case, Giuliani has never denied that he has taken steps to hide his assets from judgment creditors, and has offered no affirmative pledge that he will take no steps to do so, including in the next 30 days," she noted. 

Giuliani's net worth

About 15 years ago, the former public servant's net worth estimated at more than $50 million, with $15 million of that total from his business activities, including his work with lobbying firm Giuliani Partners.

But signs suggest Giuliani's wealth has dropped since then. For one, he's turned to hawking 9/11 shirts for $911 and at one point was selling video messages on Cameo for $325 a pop. His page on the site says Giuliani is no longer available.

Giuliani also faces other financial challenges. His long-term attorney is suing him, alleging the former mayor owes him almost $1.4 million in legal fees. Giuliani also put his Manhattan apartment up for sale earlier this year for $6.5 million, although the price has since dropped to $6.1 million.

Editor's note: This story and headline have been updated to clarify the reduction in the amount due to $146 million.

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• Rudy Giuliani

Aimee Picchi

Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.

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