(CNN) — President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he will award former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor.
The announcement comes after Giuliani, who is also Trump’s former personal attorney, was involved in a car accident in New Hampshire over the weekend.
“As President of the United States of America, I am pleased to announce that Rudy Giuliani, the greatest Mayor in the history of New York City, and an equally great American Patriot, will receive THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM, our Country’s highest civilian honor. Details as to time and place to follow,” Trump posted on Truth Social Monday afternoon.
Giuliani, who was mayor of New York City during 9/11 and was often referred to as “America’s mayor” following the terror attacks, has faced a slew of legal and financial troubles since the 2020 election, where he played a key role in several of Trump’s efforts to try to overturn the results.
He has continued to receive support from the president, who appointed Giuliani to an advisory council inside the Department of Homeland Security in June and put Giuliani’s son, Andrew, in charge of the White House Task Force for the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Giuliani spokesperson Ted Goodman told CNN in a statement, “There is no American more deserving of this honor. Mayor Rudy Giuliani took down the Mafia, saved New York City, comforted the nation following 9/11, and served in countless other ways to improve the lives of others. Thank you, President Trump, for honoring his life and legacy.”
The former mayor was hospitalized this weekend after his vehicle was struck from behind at “high speed” on Saturday evening, his head of security, Michael Ragusa, said in a statement on X. Giuliani was transported to a nearby trauma center “where he was diagnosed with a fractured thoracic vertebrae, multiple lacerations and contusions, as well as injuries to his left arm and lower leg.”
Ragusa told CNN on Sunday that Giuliani was “in great spirits” and “fully alert and conscious.”
Giuliani, who served as mayor from 1994 through 2001, was widely credited with New York City’s revitalization during the 1990s, when crime dropped significantly and the economy boomed, and praised for his response to the 9/11 terror attack.
He joined Trump’s legal team in April 2018, coming under scrutiny the following year after reporting emerged that he urged Ukraine to investigate Trump’s 2020 political rival, then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, and his son Hunter. Federal prosecutors investigated him for possible violations of foreign lobbying laws but ultimately said no charges would be brought.
In 2020, Trump put him in charge of his campaign’s post-election legal challenges.
Since then, Giuliani has continued to face the fallout of participating in efforts to overturn Trump’s 2020 electoral defeat. He was disbarred last year in New York state and Washington, DC. Two former Georgia election workers, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, also obtained a $148 million defamation judgment against him for false allegations he made about them after the 2020 election.
In January, he reached a settlement agreement with Freeman and Moss that allowed him to keep his home and most valuable possessions.
This story has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Katelyn Polantz and Nicki Brown contributed to this report.