Rudy Giuliani’s Lawyer Wishes Rudy Giuliani Would Shut the Hell Up

Rudy Giuliani, whose path from “America’s mayor” to “Christ, somebody call security” will no doubt be studied for decades to come, has a lot of legal problems, most (but not all!) of which stem from his attempt to overturn the 2020 election. For instance, this week Giuliani is in court to determine how much money he should have to pay Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, the election workers the former mayor has admitted to—and been officially found liable for—defaming. And so far, things are not going well for the guy, on account of his inability to stop pissing off the judge.

Yes, after showing up 20 minutes late on the first day of the proceedings, and apparently coming very close to flashing the courtroom, Giuliani really provoked Judge Beryl Howell’s ire when he went on an extended rant to reporters in which he repeated the same election lies that got him sued by Freeman and Moss in the first place. “Everything I said about them is true,” Giuliani shamelessly claimed Monday night. “They were engaged in changing the votes.” Told there is no proof whatsoever of that, he insisted: “You’re damn right there is. Stay tuned.”

Back in court on Tuesday, Howell warned Giuliani he could face another defamation claim, and asked his attorney, Joseph Sibley, “Was Mr. Giuliani just playing for the cameras?” To which Sibley basically responded that his client is a loose cannon and he’d love it if the ex-mayor turned Trump attorney would shut the f–k up.

Per the Daily Beast:

Sibley conceded that Giuliani’s comments were unfortunate, adding that he “can’t control everything he does,” especially outside the courtroom. Later Tuesday, Sibley said in court, “My client, as you saw last night, likes to talk a lot, unfortunately.”

Later Sibley attempted to suggest that Giuliani should not be judged too harshly and that his behavior is the result of being an old man, saying: “This has taken a bit of a toll on him. He’s almost 80 years old. There are health concerns for Mr. Giuliani.” The day prior, Sibley asked the jury to take pity on his client, saying the roughly $43 million Freeman and Moss have requested in damages “would be the end of Mr. Giuliani” and the “civil equivalent of the death penalty.”

One might say those consequences are actually entirely appropriate given the havoc Giuliani has wreaked on these women’s lives. On Tuesday, Moss told the jury that after he spread baseless about her and her mother, “I was afraid for my life. I literally felt like someone going to come and attempt to hang me and there’s nothing that anyone will be able to do about it,” adding: “December 4, 2020, was the last day I was this outgoing, happy, bubbly Shaye. That was the day that everything in my life changed; everything just flipped upside down.” She also said: “I now am very anxious. I have these nonstop anxious sweats. I have a lot of dark moments. I no longer go out. I will not be caught out anywhere alone, ever…. I look totally different, I gained like 70 pounds. I stress eat, I cry a lot. I’m just this whole new stressed-out person.”