Donald Trump is facing scrutiny in a courtroom for allegedly making false statements during the recent presidential debate — not regarding politics or Kamala Harris, but concerning the “Central Park Five.”
The five individuals who were wrongly implicated in a brutal series of assaults in Central Park during 1989 are expressing their discontent with comments Trump made on September 10 in Philadelphia, amidst his debate with Harris.
ABC
As you may recall, Harris highlighted Trump’s previous call for the death penalty for the Central Park Five … a stance he adopted in a full-page advertisement published in several newspapers, including the NY Times, after they were arrested in ’89.
During the debate, Trump defended his advertisement in response to Harris, asserting, “They confessed — they claimed they pled guilty. I thought, if they pleaded guilty, they indeed harmed a person, ultimately causing a death.”
The five individuals have several grievances regarding Trump’s comments. In their lawsuit, they emphasize that no fatalities occurred during the attacks — and crucially, they never admitted guilt. In reality, they pleaded not guilty and were eventually fully vindicated.
Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown and Korey Wise — now collectively known as the “Exonerated Five” — are pursuing legal action against Trump for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress, seeking both compensatory and punitive damages.