The spiraling fiasco continues for Rudy Giuliani. President Donald Trump’s attorney not only is being accused of sexual assault by a former staffer, but this person alleged that Giuliani and Trump conspired to sell pardons. The plaintiff said in her lawsuit that Giuliani and Trump were selling presidential pardons for $2 million each. The hair-raising allegations, if true, would send legal shockwaves against Trump for major corruption while he was commander in chief.
Presidential Pardons Allegedly Up For Sale
Noelle Dunphy, who served at Giuliani’ law firm as the director of business operations, said in a lawsuit filed on May 15 that the former president’s attorney asked her if she “knew anyone in need of a pardon, telling her that he was selling pardons for $2 million, which he and Donald Trump would split.”
According to Dunphy’s lawsuit, Dunphy said these pardons would not go through the normal process for clemency applications. Giuliani allegedly did not want the pardon application to be filed with the Office of the Pardon Attorney because it would then create a paper trail that was discoverable by a court and that could be released under a Freedom of Information Act request.
Pardons can typically take years to process, and the Office of the Pardon Attorney is reportedly suffering under the weight of 17,000 clemency applications.
Giuliani Says He Is Innocent
Giuliani vociferously denied what Dunphy alleged in the lawsuit – both the allegations of sexual coercion and the pardon accusations. “Mayor Giuliani’s lifetime of public service speaks for itself, and he will pursue all available remedies and counterclaims,” his spokesman said.
Giuliani’s attorney, speaking to Rolling Stone magazine, said, “This is pure harassment and an attempt at extortion.”
Dunphy also had disturbing sexual accusations against Trump’s former lawyer. Dunphy said in the lawsuit that Giuliani demanded sex at any time and that fulfilling his requests were an “absolute requirement” for her employment.
$2 Million Lawsuit
It is unclear if Dunphy, 43, filed a police report documenting Giuliani’s sexual assaults. Dunphy’s lawsuit said that she could not afford to lose her job and would be retaliated against should she complain. Dunphy was fired in January of 2021 and is suing Giuliani for $10 million in backpay and for breach of contract, along with the sexual assault allegations and punitive damages.
One aspect of the case that Giuliani’s lawyer may bring up should this case go to trial is that Dunphy initially admitted to the Daily Beast that she was in a romantic relationship with Giuliani.
Dunphy had more accusations against Giuliani – he was often intoxicated and used “sexist, racist, and antisemitic” language around her.
Giuliani Is Spiraling
Whatever the outcome of this case, it is another example of a stunning downfall for the man who was once called “America’s mayor” due to his prowess following the 9/11 attacks when he led New York City after the tragedy.
But while serving in defense of Trump, the former mayor struggled with ethical transgressions. Giuliani was pivotal in claiming that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump. He also allegedly sent fake electors to Washington, DC, to assist in overturning the result.
In addition, the former mayor is being investigated by the Fulton County district attorney for meddling in the election outcome for the 2020 election in Georgia.
An attorney bar discipline committee in Washington determined that he violated at least one professional rule in his desire to help Trump fight the election outcome.
The three-member panel concluded in December that Giuliani acted unethically when he pursued legal actions in Pennsylvania to throw out hundreds of thousands of votes in that state.
As for Trump and the pardoning accusations, this is another charge of corruption that could someday affect his re-election campaign. While he is not the main target of this lawsuit, the allegations that he demanded some payment for a pardon make it look like he has no moral compass.
In Trump’s defense, this may not be true and is based on hearsay from Giuliani’s statements, but it is not a good development for Trump’s various legal teams who are stretched thin defending the ex-president in various other predicaments.
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Author Expertise and Experience
Serving as 19FortyFive’s Defense and National Security Editor, Dr. Brent M. Eastwood is the author of Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare. He is an Emerging Threats expert and former U.S. Army Infantry officer. You can follow him on Twitter @BMEastwood. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and Foreign Policy/ International Relations.
