Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani appears in court
(CNN, KYMA/KECY) - Former Trump Attorney Rudy Giuliani and 10 other Trump allies entered not guilty pleas Tuesday to charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Arizona.
This includes Christina Bobb, who now serves as the Republican National Committee's (RNC) top lawyer for election integrity.
The pleas come after Giuliani appeared to duck attempts by Arizona officials to serve him with a summons, which backfired after they found him based on some of his podcasts.
Rudy Giuliani's arraignment in the Arizona fake electors case started by phoning in his "not guilty" plea, Giuliani represented himself, striking a defiant and familiar tone.
"I do consider this indictment a complete embarrassment to the American legal system," Giuliani said during his arraignement.
The judge responded by saying, "I don't want to mute you, but we need to move on."
18 people indicted
Giuliani was among 11 arraigned in the hearing. 18 overall are indicted in the case, which traces back to the moment when fake electors gathered in a room shortly after the 2020 election, signing documents that Donald Trump won Arizona even though Joe Biden won.
They're now charged by Arizona with conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, including former Arizona Republican Party Chair Kelli Ward and her husband, Michael Ward , and Christina Bobb, current election integrity counsel at the RNC and former personality on conservative outlet One America News (OAN), all pleading not guilty.
"The arraignment went as planned and we'll deal with the case," Bobb said.
What did not go as planned: Getting Rudy Giuliani to actually appear for the arraignment.
The Arizona Attorney General's Office tried for three weeks. America's mayor, who bounces from New York to Florida, taunting arizona's prosecutors behind his podcast microphone.
"If they're so incompetent, that if they can't find me, they also can't find votes correctly," Giuliani said in his podcast.
Florida birthday party
Prosecutors say their agents were in New York were trying to deliver Giuliani a notice to appear in Arizona court.
Then, Giuliani popped up in Florida, live streaming his 80th birthday party in Palm Beach, alongside trump loyalists, posting this selfie, surrounded by friends, taunting authorities writing in part, "Can't find me."
The former mayor of New York, serenading guests, left shortly after the song ended, but two agents from the AG's Office were waiting outside and served him court papers.
Mayes replied to Giuliani's tweet saying, "The final defendant was served moments ago. Rudy Giuliani nobody is above the law."
"Rudy Giuliani has made numerous statements over the past month discussing the indictment his co-defendants and quite frankly mocking the justice system in Arizona," said Nicholas Klingerman, Assistant Attorney General for Arizona.
Giuliani was ordered by the court to appear in person within 30 days and post a $10,000 bond despite his arguments in court. Six others will have appearances on charges next month.
