Closing summary
The first witness is now off the stand and jurors have been dismissed for the day. We’re now closing the blog but here is a recap of what happened today:
The federal trial to determine how much Rudy Giuliani will pay in damages began on Monday. Giuliani was found liable for defamation for false comments he made about two Georgia election workers after the 2020 election.
Eight jurors were seated in Giuliani’s defamation case. Jurors were asked several questions, including, “Do you believe that Joseph R Biden’s election as president of the United States in 2020 was illegitimate?” and “Have you ever used the phrase “Let’s Go Brandon” or the term or hashtag “WWG1WGA”?
Giuliani knowingly spread lies about two Atlanta election workers as “as a cornerstone of a call to action” to overturn the 2020 election, Von DuBose, a lawyer representing Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss said in his opening statement on Monday. He also said the case was about “names that have been disgraced”.
The plaintiffs have asked for damages between $15m and $43m. Giuliani’s attorney said awarding them this level of payout would be like the “death penalty” for his client. He added that “it will be the end of Mr Giuliani”.
Special counsel prosecutors asked the US supreme court on Monday to make an expedited decision on if Donald Trump can be criminally prosecuted on federal charges over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
Opening statements in Giuliani’s defamation case were heard today. The lawyer for the claimants argued that the case was ‘about names that have been disgraced’. Meanwhile, Giuliani’s lawyers argued that awarding tens of millions of dollars in damages for defamation would be a “death penalty” for the ex-Trump lawyer.
You can read our latest full report on Giuliani’s trial here:
And here’s our latest on Trump’s federal election interference case:
Thank you for reading! See you for more updates tomorrow.
Joseph Sibley, Giuliani’s lawyer is pressing Regina Scott on the specific qualifications she and her firm have to put together a report assessing online threats against Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss.
The purpose of his questioning appears to undermine analyses her firm did on the volume of threats Freeman and Moss faced after the 2020 election.
US district judge Beryl Howell has been patient with Sibley so far, but appears to be losing some of her tolerance. The first day of the trial is scheduled to wrap up in about 20 minutes.
