Election denier and ‘MyPillow Guy’ Mike Lindell confirms he’s out of money, can’t pay legal bills

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Attorneys who’ve been defending MyPillow chief govt and election denier Mike Lindell in opposition to defamation lawsuits by voting machine corporations are in search of courtroom permission to stop, saying he owes them unspecified hundreds of thousands of {dollars} and may’t pay the hundreds of thousands extra that he’ll owe in authorized bills going ahead.

Lindell confirmed in an interview with The Related Press on Friday that he’s out of cash and mentioned he understands his attorneys are individuals who have to make a dwelling.

Lawyer Andrew Parker wrote in paperwork filed in federal courtroom on Thursday that his agency and a second agency representing MyPillow in lawsuits by Smartmatic and Dominion Voting Methods can’t afford what it will value to signify Lindell and MyPillow via the remainder of the litigation. Persevering with to defend him would put the companies “in severe monetary threat,” he wrote.

It’s the most recent in a string of authorized and monetary setbacks for Lindell, who propagates former President Donald Trump’s lies that the 2020 election was stolen from him, partially by rigged voting machine methods. A number of big-box retailers, together with Walmart, have discontinued his merchandise.

“MyPillow’s been decimated. … We’ve misplaced a whole bunch of hundreds of thousands of {dollars},” Lindell mentioned, including that the opposite principal belongings he has left are his residence and pickup truck. He blamed Dominion, Smartmatic and the information media, together with the conservative retailers Fox Information and Newsmax.

“You’re all doing it since you need me to close up about safety of our elections,” a defiant Lindell mentioned. “You’re all the identical.”

However he vowed to maintain preventing and to maintain MyPillow going. He mentioned he doesn’t have every other money owed and has no plans to file for chapter for himself or MyPillow.

In a rambling video posted on his FrankSpeech web site Thursday night time, he depicted himself as a sufferer of “cancel tradition” and mentioned he wasn’t executed preventing.

“I’m by no means going to cease attempting to safe elections for this nation ever,” Lindell mentioned.

Parker filed the requests to stop in federal courtroom in Minnesota, the place Smartmatic filed a defamation lawsuit in search of over $1 billion, and in Washington, D.C., the place Lindell is a defendant in the same $1.3 billion lawsuit by Dominion Voting Methods that additionally targets Trump allies Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell. Dominion received a virtually $800 million settlement from Fox Information in April. Giuliani is being sued by a former lawyer over allegedly unpaid authorized payments.

Parker’s agency additionally moved for permission to cease defending Lindell, MyPillow and FrankSpeech from a defamation lawsuit filed in federal courtroom in Colorado by Eric Coomer, former director of product technique and safety for Denver-based Dominion.

In July, Lindell acknowledged to the Star Tribune of Minneapolis that his firm was auctioning off tools and subleasing a few of its manufacturing area in Minnesota after a number of main retailers and a few TV procuring networks stopped carrying MyPillow merchandise amid the detrimental publicity. He mentioned the tools was now not wanted as MyPillow consolidated its operations and turned its focus to direct gross sales.

In April, an arbitration panel ordered Lindell to pay $5 million to a software program engineer for breach of contract in a dispute over information that Lindell claimed proves China interfered within the U.S. 2020 elections and tipped the end result to President Joe Biden. Lindell had launched his “Show Mike Incorrect Problem,” as a part of the “Cyber Symposium” he staged in South Dakota in 2021 to additional his theories.

Parker wrote in his filings that Lindell and MyPillow had commonly paid his agency in full and on time via the tip of 2022. However he mentioned the funds slowed this yr whereas the litigation charges and prices “dramatically elevated.” By Could, the funds slowed to greater than 60 days and didn’t cowl the total payments. Lindell and MyPillow made no funds for the agency’s July and August payments, he wrote, although they did make some comparatively small funds that have been solely a fraction of the full owed.

The legal professional mentioned his agency, Parker Daniels Kibort, or PDK, warned Lindell and MyPillow in August and September that it must withdraw if the payments weren’t paid.

He mentioned Lindell and MyPillow perceive his agency’s place, don’t object, and are within the strategy of discovering new attorneys. No trial date is scheduled in both the Smartmatic or Dominion circumstances.

Ever the pitchman, Lindell, often called the MyPillow Man, requested viewers of his webcast who needed to assist to name in and purchase his pillows, towels and different merchandise.