NEW YORK (AP) — Lawyers for two former Georgia election workers owed $148 million in damages after suing Rudy Giuliani for defamation said Tuesday that evidence proves their clients are entitled to three World Series rings the former mayor of New York City says he gave to his son.
The lawyers filed papers in Manhattan federal court asking a judge to rule that their clients should receive the rings marking the New York Yankees' victories in 1996, 1999 and 2000.
They noted that Giuliani had listed the rings among his assets during a 2023 bankruptcy proceeding and said his son had provided no evidence beyond his testimony to support his claim to the rings.
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A trial over custody of the rings and Giuliani's condominium in Palm Beach, Florida is scheduled for Jan. 16 before a judge who ruled Monday that Giuliani responded with contempt to his orders to turn over evidence related to his assets.
Giuliani, 80, testified in a Dec. 27 deposition that when the late Yankees owner gave him four rings in 2002, he told George Steinbrenner, “These are for Andrew,” giving his then-teenage son, Andrew Giuliani, now 38 , referred to.
He said he paid for it and immediately gave one to his son and kept three others, eventually giving him the rest at a birthday party in 2018. He estimated the rings are now worth about $27,000.
The rings and the Florida condominium, which Giuliani insists is his legal residence and protected from the judgment, are the remaining disputed assets after President-elect Donald Trump's former personal attorney gave up other valuable assets, including his apartment in Manhattan, a Mercedes once owned by actor Lauren Bacall and watches.
Giuliani has said he doesn't know what happened to a jersey signed by Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio or a photo signed by another beloved Yankees slugger, Reggie Jackson.
Attorneys for former election workers mother and daughter Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss wrote in court filings that Giuliani's son had failed to provide any direct evidence “other than his own self-serving testimony” to show that he stole the ring had accepted. from his father on May 26, 2018, or any time prior to last October.
They said he never appraised the rings, cleaned them, listed the rings on his renter's insurance policy or took out a separate policy to insure the rings. They also said he never did any tax, estate or financial planning related to the rings.
The lawyers said that although Giuliani said he gave the rings to his son in 2018, his son testified he did not receive them until mid-2023, when Giuliani put his Manhattan apartment up for sale. They wrote that if the judge found that the rings were indeed given away in 2023, he would have to rule that the exchange was fraudulent.
Ted Goodman, a publicist for Giuliani, said the attorneys for the Georgia women “can celebrate their fight to wrest Mayor Giuliani's most cherished personal belongings, including his autographed childhood hero baseball jersey and his grandfather's pocket watch, but they can never take them away.” his extraordinary record.”
An email seeking comment was sent to Andrew Giuliani's attorney.
