President-elect Donald Trump has asked a judge to dismiss the defamation lawsuit against him filed by the Central Park Five, claiming it is “legally insufficient and meritless.”
“Plaintiffs’ attempt to use the courts to silence political discourse is barred by Pennsylvania’s robust protections for free speech,” Trump’s legal team wrote in a Tuesday letter to Judge Wendy Beetlestone. “Pennsylvania’s anti-SLAPP statute provides immunity for ‘protected public expression’ on matters of public concern, including statements made during a political debate, shielding defendants from meritless lawsuits designed to chill 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