Federal judge orders Rudy Giuliani to surrender luxury apartment but not World Series rings

Rudy Giuliani – or at least his son Andrew – gets to keep his three World Series rings. For now.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman ordered Giuliani on Tuesday to surrender his property to settle a $145 million civil judgment for defaming two Georgia election workers after the 2020 election by falsely saying they stuffed ballot boxes.

The belongings at stake include a luxury New York apartment on Madison Avenue and a $2 million claim for legal fees against former President Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee.

Liman ruled that seizing the property would make it easier for election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss to sell them. Giuliani had asked to delay trying to collect the legal fees from Trump until Nov. 6 to avoid influencing the election with “inaccurate” claims sparking a “media frenzy,” a proposal Liman ridiculed.

“The profound irony manifest in Defendant’s alleged concern is not lost on the Court,” Liman wrote. “By his own admission, Defendant defamed Plaintiffs by perpetuating lies about them.”

Liman said the ownership of the former New York mayor’s World Series rings will be determined separately, after his son Andrew Giuliani claimed he was given the rings in 2018.

Likewise, the status of Giuliani's condo in West Palm Beach, Florida, will be the subject of a hearing Oct. 28.

But other belongings Giuliani must turn include Yankees souvenirs such as a picture of Reggie Jackson and a jersey signed by Joe DiMaggio, along with a 1980 Mercedes previously owned by Lauren Bacall, jewelry and fancy watches from Bulova and Rolex.

Ted Goodman, a spokesperson for Giuliani, said in a statement Wednesday the former mayor was “being unfairly punished by partisan, political activists” by forcing him to relinquish deeply personal belongings while he appeals the judgment. But Goodman said Giuliani is confident he will ultimately prevail.

“They are attempting to bully and intimidate him into silence through the weaponization of our justice system and through obvious lawfare,” Goodman said.

What was the civil case about?

Giuliani's attacks on Freeman and Moss came as the Trump campaign worked in a half-dozen narrowly contested states to overturn Biden's victories. Giuliani has been charged criminally with election racketeering and has pleaded not guilty.

Giuliani accused the election workers “under false pretenses” of excluding observers during the vote count, of introducing “suitcases” of illegal ballots, counting the same ballots multiple times and surreptitiously passing around flash drives, according to the women’s lawsuit.

At a meeting with Georgia lawmakers on Dec. 10, 2020, Giuliani said Freeman and Moss were "quite obviously, surreptitiously, passing around USB ports as if they’re vials of heroin or cocaine."

But Freeman and Moss testified at a U.S. House hearing that they were passing ginger mints.

To date, Giuliani hasn't paid anything against the civil judgment from December 2023, which grows at 5% interest per year, Liman wrote.

This story has been updated to include a statement from Giuliani's spokesperson.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Federal judge orders Rudy Giuliani to surrender property in civil case