WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A United States (US) judge held former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani in contempt of court on Friday for continuing to defame two Georgia election workers.

Giuliani, Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, was ordered by a federal jury in Washington in December 2023 to pay nearly US$148 million to Ruby Freeman and her daughter Wandrea “Shaye” Moss for repeatedly making false claims that they engaged in 2020 election fraud.

At a court hearing in Washington on Friday, District Judge Beryl Howell found Giuliani in contempt and threatened him with potential fines if he continues to make defamatory remarks about the pair.

It was the second time this week the 80-year-old Giuliani was found in contempt of court.

A district judge in New York held him in contempt on Monday for failing to reveal information about assets he has been ordered to hand over to Freeman and Moss.

Giuliani attacked Howell following the hearing in Washington, calling her a “mockery of a judge” and saying she is “dying to give me a prison sentence”.

“I shouldn’t be the one that’s paying fines,” he told reporters. “I shouldn’t be the one in contempt, she should be.”

Giuliani was a key figure in Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. A former New York prosecutor, he has been disbarred over his false election claims.

Giuliani, who has filed for bankruptcy, has been ordered to surrender his US$6 million New York apartment, a 1980 Mercedes Benz convertible, jewellery, luxury watches, and valuable collectible items including a jersey signed by baseball legend Joe DiMaggio.

Giuliani was found guilty of defaming the two women as they took part in a vote count in the swing state of Georgia after the presidential election in 2020.

Using a video showing the two women passing an object — later revealed to be a mint — the former New York mayor claimed they were exchanging a USB drive “like vials of heroin or cocaine” to rig the results.

Freeman and Moss, who are Black, told the jury during the defamation trial that Giuliani’s false accusations had upended their lives and made them the target of racist threats.

An eight-person federal jury awarded Freeman and Moss more than US$16 million each for defamation, US$20 million each for emotional distress and US$75 million in punitive damages.