President-elect Donald Trump has asked a federal court to dismiss a defamation case stemming from comments he made about the Central Park Five, a group of five Black and Hispanic men who were exonerated of a violent 1989 attack and rape in New York City’s Central Park.
Trump’s attorneys say that his remarks during a September 10 debate with Vice President Kamala Harris are protected by the First Amendment as free speech. According to Reuters, his comments are opinions on a topic of public concern, not libellous charges.
Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown, and Korey Wise filed a defamation complaint in October, alleging that Trump’s words wrongly accused them of a crime and caused significant emotional anguish. The five men, who were teens at the time of the crime, were exonerated in 2002 after DNA evidence and a confession from the actual offender, Matias Reyes, cleared them.
During the debate, Trump reportedly repeated inaccurate assertions about the case, implying that the five were guilty despite being exonerated. The lawsuit cites Trump’s 1989 call for their execution and claims that his recent words have harmed their image even further.
“Defendant Trump falsely stated [at the debate] that Plaintiffs killed an individual and pleaded guilty to the crime,” according to the civil action. “These statements are clearly false. Plaintiffs never pleaded guilty to any crime and were eventually cleared of all charges. Furthermore, the victims of the Central Park attacks were not killed.
Trump’s legal team claims that his words are protected by the First Amendment, describing them as opinions on a historically significant issue. However, the plaintiffs’ attorney, Shanin Spectre, claims that the allegations are false and defamatory.
“We look forward to taking discovery and proceeding to trial,” Spectre told the crowd.
Last November, U.S. District Judge Michael Baylson, a George W. Bush appointee, recused himself from the lawsuit due to personal ties to Spectre. The lawsuit will be reassigned to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where it was first filed.
The Central Park Five—Salaam, Santana, Richardson, Brown, and Wise—were wrongfully convicted of attacking investment banker Trisha Meili on her nightly jog in Central Park in 1989. Meili’s assault was so terrible that medical professionals predicted she would die from her injuries, forcing the district attorney’s office to pursue homicide charges. Years later, DNA evidence and Reyes’ confession resulted in the men’s exoneration.
Despite their vindication, Trump continues to throw doubt on their innocence. His 1989 public plea for their execution, made in a full-page newspaper ad, is still debated, and Vice President Harris brought it up during the discussion.