Donald Trump‘s attempt to shut down a defamation lawsuit tied to his 2024 debate remarks about the Central Park Five was rejected Thursday by a federal judge in Pennsylvania.
On Thursday (April 10), U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone ruled that the case brought by Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown and Korey Wise could move forward, denying Trump’s motion to dismiss, CBS News reports.
The lawsuit centers on Trump’s comments during a presidential debate with then Vice President Kamala Harris, where he falsely stated the five men had confessed and were responsible for killing someone.
“They admitted — they said, they pled guilty. And I said, well, if they pled guilty they badly hurt a person, killed a person ultimately,” Trump said during the debate. “And if they pled guilty—then they pled we’re not guilty.”
Harris had criticized Trump on stage for his long-standing role in the case, referencing the full-page newspaper ad he took out in 1989 calling for the death penalty after the five teens were arrested.
“A full-page ad in The New York Times,” Harris said. “Calling for the execution of five young Black and Latino boys who were innocent, the Central Park Five.”
The five men were exonerated in 2002 after DNA evidence and a confession from another man cleared them of the 1989 rape and assault of a jogger in Central Park. Their original convictions were vacated after years of public scrutiny and legal battles.
Central Park Five Seek To Hold Donald Trump Accountable In Court
Nonetheless, Trump’s legal team argued that his remarks were opinions based on past events and not legally defamatory. Additionally, they claimed the lawsuit was politically driven and lacked merit.
However, Judge Beetlestone disagreed, allowing the defamation claims to proceed. The judge also dismissed a separate claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The plaintiffs, now referred to as The Exonerated Five, are seeking monetary damages and punitive compensation. They allege Trump’s statements caused further harm to their reputations and caused emotional injury.
Their attorney said they now intended to hold Trump accountable for what they say are false and damaging public statements.