Mayor Giuliani is pleading with supporters for donations to his legal defense fund as he faced a contempt hearing over allegations he is in “willful defiance” of orders to hand over assets to pay for a $148 million judgment awarded to two election workers he was found liable for defaming. 

The former New York City mayor was in court on Friday for a contempt hearing as a federal district judge, Lewis Liman, weighed whether he should face civil sanctions for not turning over assets to pay for the judgment. He is also facing a trial over his refusal to hand over a condominium at Palm Beach, Florida, and World Series rings, scheduled for January 16. Mr. Giuliani says the Palm Beach property is his main residence, and it should not be included in the judgment. 

During the Friday hearing, Mr. Giuliani sent out an online plea to supporters asking for financial assistance. In a letter, the former mayor said the upcoming trial will “determine whether the Left can seize my home in Florida and truly leave me with NOTHING. This is my final chance to save my home.”

“Since there’s no way I can pay the outrageous $148 MILLION judgment against me, they want to rob me of everything I own,” he said. “They want irreplaceable mementos I gave to my only son. They want personal gifts that I was given by allies abroad to show solidarity with America after the tragedy of September 11th.”

At the end of his plea, he said he would “rather lose everything than betray what I know to be true. I could never lie and say what I’m going through is a fair and honest process just to hang on to my possessions.” He asked supporters to donate to the Rudy Giuliani Freedom Fund “as I prepare for the trial that will determine whether I still even have a home to live in.”

During his testimony on Friday, Mr. Giuliani said part of the reason he had not handed over some requested documentation was because he was given a “very short” time frame to respond. He also insisted some of the questions he faced at the hearing about doctors and lawyers he consulted with were “abusive” and over broad.”

Judge Liman suggested he might not immediately rule on whether Mr. Giuliani should face additional sanctions. He granted a continuation in the hearing until Monday.

In 2023, Mr. Giuliani was found liable by a jury at Washington, D.C.,  for defaming Wandrea “Shaye” Moss as well as her mother, Ruby Freeman, by accusing them of cheating in the 2020 election. Ms. Moss and Ms. Freeman successfully sued him for defamation as they said they experienced death threats as a result of his claims they cheated in the 2020 election.  He was ordered to pay a whopping $148 million judgment as a result. 

Mr. Giuliani has said he does not have enough cash to pay the sum. During a November court appearance, he said, “The reality is I have no cash. It’s all tied up. If I wanted to call a taxi cab, I can’t do it. I don’t have a credit card. I don’t have a checking account. I have no place I can go take cash out except a little bit that I saved, and it’s getting down to almost nothing.” 

Lawyers for Ms. Moss and Ms. Freeman said he had exhibited a “consistent pattern of willful defiance” of Judge Liman’s order to surrender assets to pay the judgment. 

Some assets he has been required to hand over include a Mercedes-Benz and a New York apartment. However, lawyers said that he did not provide the proper paperwork so they could monetize the assets. The lawyers also said he has not handed over valuable watches and other sports memorabilia, such as a shirt signed by Joe DiMaggio. 

Mr. Giuliani said in a Christmas Eve plea to the judge that he has tried to comply with the order to hand over assets and that he has given “everything that I could give.”

Ahead of Friday’s hearing, Mr. Giuliani’s attorneys asked for a “Zoom hearing” as they said their client suffers from “a bad knee and recently discovered lung issues due to his time at ground zero following the September 11 terror attacks,” CBS News reported. 

Judge Liman rejected the request as he asked why it had not been made sooner if Mr. Giuliani had been suffering from his ailments.

“Defendant has appeared in the recent past, on occasions where his testimony has not been required and the Court has not been asked to hold Defendant in contempt,” the judge wrote in his decision rejecting the request for a virtual hearing. “He has presented no evidence why for this hearing, where the Court has been asked to hold him in contempt, where his credibility has been called into question, and where Plaintiffs have asked for an opportunity to cross-examine him in person, he should be permitted to deny Plaintiffs that opportunity and to appear remotely.”

Judge Liman also told Mr. Giuliani that if he did not show up to the hearing, his previous explanation for why he did not fully comply with court orders would not stand because they would have to be subject to cross-examination.