Donald Trump has faced a legal setback as a federal judge denied his effort to dismiss a defamation lawsuit filed by the Central Park Five, a group of men wrongfully convicted for a crime they did not commit. The ruling, issued on April 10, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone, allows the case to proceed in Pennsylvania.
The lawsuit stems from comments made by Trump during a 2024 presidential debate with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, where he falsely asserted that the five men had confessed to the murder of a jogger. “They admitted — they said, they pled guilty. And I said, well, if they pled guilty they badly hurt a person, killed a person ultimately,” Trump stated, misrepresenting the facts of the case.
Harris confronted Trump during the debate, referencing a full-page advertisement he took out in The New York Times in 1989, which called for the death penalty for the five young men after their arrest. She highlighted the injustice they faced as innocent Black and Latino youths, stating, “Calling for the execution of five young Black and Latino boys who were innocent, the Central Park Five.”
The five men—Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, and Korey Wise—were exonerated in 2002 after DNA evidence and a confession from another individual cleared them of the 1989 rape and assault. Their original convictions were vacated following years of public scrutiny and legal battles.
Trump’s legal team argued that his remarks were opinions based on historical events and did not constitute defamation. They claimed the lawsuit was politically motivated and lacked legal merit. However, Judge Beetlestone disagreed, allowing the defamation claims to move forward while dismissing a separate claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The plaintiffs, now referred to as The Exonerated Five, are seeking monetary damages and punitive compensation, alleging that Trump’s statements have further harmed their reputations and caused them emotional distress. Their attorney indicated that they intend to hold Trump accountable for what they describe as false and damaging public statements.
This legal battle continues to highlight the ongoing ramifications of the Central Park Five case and the pursuit of justice for those wrongfully accused. As the case unfolds, it underscores the complex intersections of race, justice, and political discourse in America.
