On Friday, a federal judge stepped aside from overseeing the Central Park Five’s defamation case against President-elect Trump. The decision followed revelations by Shanin Specter, the plaintiffs’ lead attorney, who had disclosed his long-standing friendship with the judge and his past legal representation of both the judge and his wife.
In their motion for recusal, Trump’s attorneys argued that these connections could raise doubts about the judge’s impartiality. They wrote that “a reasonable person would question the Court’s impartiality in this matter” and sought U.S. District Judge Michael Baylson’s removal. Judge Baylson, appointed by former President George W. Bush, swiftly granted the request after the plaintiffs expressed no objection to his recusal.
The case against Trump centers on his false accusations about the Central Park Five during a nationwide televised debate
With Judge Baylson stepping aside, the case will now be reassigned within the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where it was initially filed. The lawsuit, brought by the Central Park Five, accuses Trump of making defamatory statements during a presidential debate in September about their wrongful convictions.
The five men, Black and Hispanic teenagers at the time, were falsely convicted of raping and assaulting a jogger in Central Park in 1989. They spent years imprisoned before being exonerated in 2002, following a confession by the actual perpetrator, which was corroborated by DNA evidence.
The plaintiffs contend that Trump falsely stated during the debate that they “pled guilty” and were responsible for “killing a person” remarks broadcast to millions of viewers.
Trump’s history with the group dates back decades. After the 1989 incident, he purchased full-page ads in major New York newspapers advocating for the reinstatement of the death penalty. His campaign has dismissed the current lawsuit as baseless, labeling it the work of “left-wing activists.”
The Central Park Five members were vocal critics of Trump during the election campaign. They included Yusef Salaam, now a New York City Council member, who spoke at the Democratic National Convention and later appeared in the spin room supporting Vice President Harris after the September debate.
