Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a campaign rally at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre on October 15, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Five men who were wrongfully convicted as teenagers in the so-called Central Park Five jogger rape case sued Donald Trump on Monday, saying the Republican presidential nominee defamed them by falsely claiming they killed someone and pleaded guilty.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Philadelphia, cites several statements Trump made about the men during his Sept. 10 debate with Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, after she blasted Trump for taking out an ad in 1989 calling for the then-teen defendants to be executed.
"Defendant Trump falsely stated [at the debate] that Plaintiffs killed an individual and pled guilty to the crime. These statements are demonstrably false," the civil suit said.
"Plaintiffs never pled guilty to any crime and were subsequently cleared of all wrongdoing. Further, the victims of the Central Park assaults were not killed," the complaint said.
The suit alleges that Trump's conduct toward the men at the debate "was part of a continuing pattern of extreme and outrageous conduct dating back several years, thus constituting a continuing tort."
The plaintiffs in the case, who now refer to themselves as the Exonerated Five, are Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown and Korey Wise. Salaam is a member of the New York City Council.
Their suit, which alleges claims of defamation, false light and intentional infliction of emotional distress, requests damages of more than $75,000, with total compensatory and punitive damages to be determined at trial.
Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung, in a statement provided by the campaign, said, "This is just another frivolous, Election Interference lawsuit, filed by desperate left-wing activists, in an attempt to distract the American people from Kamala Harris's dangerously liberal agenda and failing campaign."
"The frantic lawfare efforts by Lyin' Kamala's allies to interfere in the election are going nowhere and President Trump is dominating as he marches to a historic win for the American people on November 5th," Cheung said.
Jacksonrr31 on October 21st, 2024 at 15:40 UTC »
He took out a full page ads calling for the death penalty of these young men. And never apologized when they were found innocent That alone should have been enough to disqualify him. But the GOP is rotten to the core.
MajorNoodles on October 21st, 2024 at 15:40 UTC »
I see all these right wing bobbleheads - *Jordan Peterson is a recent example - threatening to sue people for defamation and then never following through because they don't actually have a case.
This is what happens when you actually have a case. There's no threat. They just sue.
AudibleNod on October 21st, 2024 at 15:11 UTC »
The man used a sharpie to 'prove' he was right about the direction of a hurricane. He garbled out the word 'covfefe' and couldn't admit it was a simple typo. And after 35 years, he can't admit the Central Park Five were unjustly charged and imprisoned. It's very unchristlike to never admit to any fault or error or sin.