The individuals known as the “Central Park Five,” now referred to as the “Exonerated Five,” have initiated a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump. They claim that his “false, misleading, and defamatory” remarks during last month’s presidential debate on ABC News have harmed their reputations, according to their legal representatives.

Lawyers representing Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, Kevin Richardson, Antron Brown, and Korey Wise submitted the federal lawsuit in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Monday. Their complaint alleges that during the debate, Trump inaccurately asserted that the “Central Park Five” had killed someone and had pled guilty to that crime back in 1989.

Trump’s comments followed Vice President Kamala Harris’s mention of his 1989 full-page ad in The New York Times that called for the execution of the five young Black and Latino boys, who were wrongfully convicted, according to the attorneys, Shanin Specter and Alexander Van Dyke. In reply to her claims, Trump stated that the men “admitted – they said, they pled guilty. And I said, well, if they pled guilty they badly hurt a person, killed a person ultimately.”

According to Specter and Van Dyke, “The reality is that none of the Central Park Five ever pled guilty, nor did anyone die as a result of the incident.”

The lawyers further noted that Trump omitted critical details in his remarks, such as the fact that the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office later admitted the teenagers’ confessions were coerced and contradicted evidence. Additionally, they pointed out that all of their convictions were overturned by the courts in 2002 and that Matias Reyes confessed to being the real assailant. The city of New York also agreed to pay the men $41 million for their wrongful convictions and how they were treated during the investigation.

The lawsuit claims Trump defamed the plaintiffs, portrayed them in a harmful false light, and caused them emotional distress. “The plaintiffs seek to set the record straight and vindicate their names once again,” stated Specter in a press release.

Trump’s controversial 1989 advertisement called for the death penalty for Central Park assaulters

The members of the “Central Park Five,” currently aged between 50 and 52, were wrongfully found guilty in connection with a series of assaults that took place in Central Park on April 19, 1989, as detailed in the lawsuit. At the time of their convictions, they were between 14 and 16 years old.

During initial interrogations by the police in 1989, the youths denied any involvement in the Central Park assaults, including that of Patricia Meili. However, after facing hours of intense and coercive questioning, four of them eventually provided written and videotaped statements claiming they were present during the incidents, according to the lawsuit.

On May 1, 1989, just 11 days after the assault on Meili in Central Park, Trump published a full-page ad in four New York City newspapers referencing the crimes. Although this advertisement did not disclose the suspects’ identities, it called for a clear message to the city: “[s]end a message loud and clear to those who would murder our citizens and terrorize New York—BRING BACK THE DEATH PENALTY AND BRING BACK OUR POLICE!”

In the ad, Trump expressed his feelings, stating, “I want to hate these muggers and murderers. They should be forced to suffer… I want to hate these murderers and I always will… I am looking to punish them… I want them to understand our anger. I want them to be afraid,” per the lawsuit.

Trump did not apologize for his remarks during post-debate interactions

Following the debate on September 10, Trump entered the spin room to address questions from attendees, including Yusef Salaam, as noted in the lawsuit. During this event, he was asked, “Will you apologize to the Exonerated Five?” and “Sir, what do you say to a member of the Central Park Five, sir?”

According to the lawsuit, Trump did not answer the question, prompting Salaam to introduce himself: “President Trump, I’m Yusef Salaam, one of the Exonerated Five. How are you?” Trump responded, “Ah, you’re on my side then.” Salaam corrected him, saying, “No, no, no, I’m not on your side.”

At that point, Trump reportedly waved Salaam off, smiled, and walked away, as detailed in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit asserts, “Plaintiff Salaam was trying to engage in a respectful dialogue with Defendant Trump about the false and defamatory remarks he made about the Plaintiffs less than an hour earlier, but Defendant Trump refused to engage with him.”