Giuliani held in contempt for repeating false claims about 2020 election workers

Rudy Giuliani, a former lawyer for President-elect Donald Trump, was held in contempt of court on Friday, for the second time this week, in a case brought by two Georgia election workers he falsely accused of helping to rig the 2020 election.

US district judge Beryl Howell in Washington found that Giuliani violated a previous court agreement to stop making allegations of wrongdoing against the election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter Wandrea "Shaye" Moss.

"It is outrageous and shameful that Mr Giuliani dares to suggest that he is the one who is being treated unfairly," Howell said as she handed down the ruling.

Howell found that Giuliani violated the court agreement when he suggested on an episode of his "America's Mayor Live" podcast in November that video showed the pair quadruple counting the ballots and using a computer hard drive to fix the machines.

The judge required Giuliani to submit a court document within 10 days acknowledging that testimony and evidence presented during his civil trial in 2023 directly contradicted his statements.

Giuliani will also have to pay attorney's fees and will face a $200 fine each day he does not file the court declaration, Howell said.

The judge said jailing Giuliani was an option if he continued to defy court orders.

Giuliani, a former New York mayor, was already held in civil contempt on Monday after a federal judge in New York determined he had not complied with information requests from Freeman and Moss.

The pair brought that case to help enforce a $148 million judgement they won against Giuliani in 2023, as part of a separate lawsuit in Washington accusing Giuliani of destroying their reputations by falsely suggesting they counted illegal ballots following the 2020 election.

Giuliani is appealing the decision.

Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse, Giuliani criticised Howell, who was appointed by former Democratic President Barack Obama, repeating claims that she was politically biased against him.

"This was a farce. She put on an absolute farce and a clown show," Giuliani said.

A second citation for contempt added to the mounting legal woes facing Giuliani, 80, over his efforts to overturn Trump's 2020 loss to Democratic President Joe Biden.

Giuliani had been disbarred for making false claims and pleaded not guilty to criminal charges in Georgia and Arizona.

Lawyers for Giuliani argued it was not clear Giuliani was referring to the two women, whom he did not reference by name on the podcast.

They also maintained that the statements were protected because Giuliani was summarising his legal position on appeal.

The agreement, signed in May 2024 after a jury handed down the $148 million judgement, bars Giuliani from making any public remarks suggesting that Freeman and Moss engaged in wrongdoing surrounding the 2020 election or repeating claims that were previously deemed defamatory.

- Reuters