The Central Park Five recently filed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump for making defamatory statements about them during a presidential debate with Vice President Kamala Harris. The suit alleges that Trump falsely claimed the men, who were wrongly convicted for the rape of a White female jogger in 1989, pleaded guilty to the crime and killed a person during a series of assaults in Central Park. The lawsuit argues that these statements were demonstrably false, as the Central Park Five never pleaded guilty and the victims of the assaults were not killed.
Steven Cheung, a spokesman for the Trump campaign, criticized the lawsuit as frivolous and an attempt to interfere in the upcoming presidential election. He dismissed the lawsuit as “frantic lawfare efforts” by Kamala Harris’s allies and emphasized that Trump is on track to win the election. The Central Park Five, teenagers at the time of the assaults, were arrested and charged for the rape and assault of Trisha Meili, as well as other crimes. Despite maintaining their innocence throughout the trial, the five were convicted in 1990.
The five men were exonerated in 2002 when DNA evidence linked another man to the assaults. They are now known as the “Exonerated Five.” The lawsuit alleges that Trump’s statements during the debate were false and insulting, as they inaccurately attributed criminal offenses to the plaintiffs for which they had never been charged, accused, or convicted. The lawsuit also details an interaction between one of the men, Yusef Salaam, and Trump in the “spin room” after the debate. Salaam introduced himself as one of the Exonerated Five and attempted to engage in dialogue with Trump about his statements, but Trump refused to engage.
Members of the Exonerated Five, including Yusef Salaam and Korey Wise, have been speaking out against Trump and supporting get-out-the-vote efforts. Salaam, now a New York City councilmember, and Wise have appeared on the campaign trail with civil rights leader Reverend Al Sharpton. The lawsuit seeks to hold Trump accountable for his defamatory statements and seeks damages for the harm caused by his false accusations. It underscores the importance of seeking justice for those wrongly accused and convicted, and highlights the impact of false statements made by public figures.
