Trump wants the Central Park 5 defamation lawsuit thrown out

President-elect Donald Trump asked a judge dismiss the defamation suit against him, filed by the Central Park Five, claiming it is “legally insufficient and without merit.”

“Plaintiffs’ attempt to use the courts to silence political speech is barred by Pennsylvania’s robust free speech protections,” Trump’s legal team wrote in a Tuesday letter to Judge Wendy Beetlestone. “Pennsylvania’s anti-SLAPP statute provides immunity for “protected public speech” on matters of public interest, including statements made during a political debate, shielding allegations from frivolous lawsuits designed to freeze free speech.”

The update came a month after the Exonerated Five — Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown (formerly known as Antron McCray) and Korey Wise — sued Trump for falsely stating in his September debate against Vice President Kamala Harris that the men initially pleaded guilty to the 1989 assault and rape, as opposed to merely pleading guilty during police interviews.

“His technically incorrect use of the legal terminology “pleaded guilty” does not render the statement substantially false, particularly when the effect on a lay audience would be the same as the truth (ie, the plaintiffs ‘admitted’ guilt),” they wrote lawyers in the letter. “Minor inaccuracies in terminology do not
constitutes defamation.”

“President-elect Trump further emphasized that his views reflect the widespread public sentiment of the era, contextualizing his comments as part of a larger discussion about crime and justice,” they continued. “No reasonable listener would interpret these statements as saying recently that the plaintiffs were guilty of the Central Park murders, especially since President-elect Trump acknowledged during the debate that the plaintiffs were ultimately exonerated.”

Trump’s team further insisted that “his comments during the debate contextualized his actions in 1989 and were based on the plaintiffs’ own admissions at the time without misrepresenting the material facts.”

The former “Celebrity Apprentice” host infamously took out full-page ads in four New York City newspapers in May 1989 calling for the reinstatement of the death penalty. following the Central Park attack and has since refused to apologize – including after the 2024 debate in question. New York City settled a civil rights lawsuit against the five men for $41 million in 2014.

The formal request also came just days after he filed to recuse the first judge — Judge Michael M. Baylson — because of his relationship with the Exonerated Five’s legal counsel. That filing took place last Thursday, and he was replaced by Judge Beetlestone on Monday.

If the case is not dismissed, the Exonerated Five are seeking a jury trial as well as compensatory and punitive damages from Trump in excess of $75,000.