World Series Rings Embroiled in Rudy Giuliani Defamation Lawsuit
The defamation lawsuit against former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani by two Georgia election workers has now involved some MLB treasures.
On Oct. 8, Giuliani's son Andrew Giuliani filed documents in Manhattan federal court fighting for custody of four New York Yankees World Series rings given to the ex-mayor more than two decades ago, according to The Associated Press. Mayor Giuliani lost the defamation case last year and has been ordered to pay the plaintiffs $148 million, which can be paid off using personal property. He listed three of the rings as part of his personal possessions in a bankruptcy filing earlier this year.
Andrew Giuliani is claiming in the new motion that his father gifted him the rings in May 2018 after the former politician celebrated his 74th birthday. The elder Giuliani received the rings for each Yankees World Series win while he was in office: 1996, 1998, 1999, and 2000. While Andrew received all four as a gift, he claimed that his dad temporarily kept one of them to wear in his day-to-day.
"He said to me, in substance and in part, 'I told you when I got these that they would be yours someday, and I want to give them to you now,'" the younger Giuliani's filing said. "As a child and young adult, I had spent many nights with my father watching Yankees games and bonding over our love for the team, and I was excited about receiving the rings."
To prove they're his property, Andrew submitted a photo of him and his wife holding two of the rings and standing with his dad the same night he allegedly gifted him the jewelry. His father, meanwhile, is in the midst of appealing the $148 million order as he claimed Ruby Freeman and her daughter Wandrea "Shaye" Moss didn't prove his 2020 election fraud claims were made with "actual malice" as required in defamation cases.
“Mr. Giuliani has spent years evading accountability for his actions,” lawyers for Freeman and Moss said after his unsuccessful attempt to declare bankruptcy. "Now that Mr. Giuliani’s bankruptcy case has been dismissed, [the] plaintiffs are finally in a position to receive a measure of compensation by enforcing their judgment."
A federal judge in Manhattan has set a hearing date for Oct. 17 to determine how to proceed with Freeman and Moss' motion seeking possession of Mayor Giuliani’s assets.