Dec.29

electoral-vote.com

Dem 51

   

GOP 49

This Week in Schadenfreude: Giuliani Will Have His Day(s) in Court

Since Rudy Giuliani has already claimed the trophy for This Year in Schadenfreude, we thought we'd use the last schadenfreude of the year to review just how well and royally screwed he is on the legal front. Here is a rundown of his 11 pending cases, from least bad to most:

1. The Grocery Store Employee Lawsuit: While campaigning for his son in 2022, Giuliani got in a kerfuffle with a grocery store clerk named Daniel Gill. Gill claims Giuliani was the aggressor, Giuliani claims it was Gill. Video footage from the store backs Gill's version; he's sued for $2 million.
   
   
2. The Blueberry Farmers and the Ukraine Film: Giuliani announced, several years back, that he was making a film about Hunter Biden and Ukraine, and he got two right-wing California farmers to pony up $1 million toward the project. It never happened, and now they have sued to get their money back.
   
   
3. Hunter Biden's Laptop: Giuliani laid hands on the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop and used that information for political purposes. This almost certainly violated numerous laws, and the First Son has sued.
   
   
4. Unpaid Legal Bills: Davidoff Hutcher & Citron says it's done $1.5 million in legal work for Giuliani, and has been paid only $240,000. It has sued for the balance.
   
   
5. Dominion...: After the 2020 election, Giuliani spun wild tales about voting-machine makers Dominion and Smartmatic, and how they conspired to keep Donald Trump from winning. It was a tissue of lies, and both companies sued Giuliani (and others) for hundreds of millions in damages. The only reason these two aren't higher on the list is that by the time they are resolved, getting any money out of Giuliani will be like getting blood from a stone.
   
   
6. ... And Smartmatic: See above. This one is higher on the list than Dominion because Smartmatic, knowing they won't get money from Giuliani, is working on a case they hope will destroy whatever is left of his reputation.
   
   
7. Noelle Dunphy: Dunphy is a former employee of Giuliani and says he sexually assaulted her and stiffed her on wages. This will probably harm Giuliani's reputation more than Dominion/Smartmatic because "sex scandal" is easier for most people to parse than "he said mean things about two big companies."
   
   
8. The Georgia Election Workers: Ruby Freeman and Wandrea "Shaye" Moss already have a judgment, and a judge who's willing to help them collect as quickly as is possible. Giuliani filed for bankruptcy, but once that is adjudicated, these two women are more likely to get money than any person or entity who is lower on this list.
   
   
9. The Georgia Election Workers, Redux: Giuliani will face off against Freeman and Moss again, as he's continued to defame them, even after losing the first defamation suit. The jury is not likely to be kind to America's Former Mayor, and his odds of escaping judgment #2 via bankruptcy are even poorer than escaping judgment #1.
   
   
10. Unindicted Co-conspirator No. 1: Thus far, Jack Smith has focused on Donald Trump in the Washington election interference case, since there is a time-sensitive element there (you may not have heard, but Trump is running for president). Eventually, Smith is going to get around to indicting co-conspirator #1, who is dead to rights, just based on the evidence that's publicly known.
    
    
11. The Fulton County Criminal Case: The various civil cases are eventually going to take any money Giuliani has left, and at that point, the rest will primarily be about making a statement. The criminal cases, on the other hand, have the potential to take away his freedom, perhaps for the rest of his natural life. The Fulton case ranks above the Washington case because the Fulton case is already locked, loaded and ready to go.

Giuliani has hurt many people, and done many despicable things, and when he finally pays the piper, it will be richly deserved. (Z)