Rudy Giuliani is expected to remain hospitalized for several days after a 19-year-old motorist rear-ended his vehicle on a New Hampshire interstate highway — as it was revealed President Trump will award him the Medal of Freedom, the Daily News has learned.
The former New York City mayor and disbarred Trump lawyer was a passenger in a rental Ford Bronco driven by his spokesman, Ted Goodman, when police say another driver, Lauren Kemp of Concord, N.H., slammed into them about 10 p.m. Saturday.
Meanwhile, Trump revealed on Truth Social his intention to give Giuliani the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
Giuliani, 81, is recovering after he suffered a fractured thoracic vertebra, as well as cuts, bruising and injuries to his left arm and lower leg, according to his head of security, Michael Ragusa.
“He wants to get right back to work,” Ragusa said. “This man is a workhorse, literally.”
Giuliani and Goodman were traveling on the southbound side of Interstate 93. Ragusa said right before the crash, Giuliani was flagged down by a woman who was on the side of the road, south of Exit 9N, and said her domestic partner was abusing her and that he “rendered assistance,” called 911 and remained on the scene until officers showed up.
“My understanding is the mayor, he pulled over, someone was flagging him down and he didn’t know what for,” Ragusa said. “I want to reiterate, both incidents have nothing to do with each other. … It’s just wrong place, wrong time.”
The crash happened moments later, when Goodman and Giuliani started to drive off, Ragusa said.
Goodman and Giuliani, after helping the woman, exited the highway and got back on, heading north, New Hampshire State Police said Monday evening.
They were going north on Interstate 93 between Exits 8 and 9 in Manchester when Kemp struck the back of their Ford Bronco with her Honda CR-V, sending both into the median. The crash took place almost directly across from the scene where the domestic violence incident was reported, according to a New Hampshire State Police statement.
“As a result of the collision, both vehicles went into the median and were heavily damaged,” police said.
No charges have been filed as investigators probe whether the crash was caused by drivers being distracted by — or gawking at — the police response to the domestic violence incident on the other side of the interstate, New Hampshire State Police said.
New Hampshire State Police said Sunday that officers from Troop B were already on the scene, responding to the domestic violence call on the southbound side of the interstate.
Goodman declined to comment Monday, and attempts to reach Kemp were unsuccessful.
The former mayor, who was disbarred and stripped of his New York law license in July 2024 over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, was said to be in good spirits despite his injuries. He expects to be “getting back to business in just a few days,” Ragusa posted on X.
Ragusa said Giuliani was staying at an unnamed friend’s apartment in New Hampshire, where he goes in the summer for vacation and various speaking engagements.
In a social media post Sunday evening, Giuliani thanked Maria Ryan, his “business partner” and a nurse practitioner, for “overseeing the care of America’s Mayor.”
Ryan, who lives in the Granite State, according to local property records, has long been rumored to be Giuliani’s secret girlfriend — something they have consistently denied. Giuliani and Ryan attended a local baseball game together the day before the accident, according to video posted by ABC affiliate WMUR.
In legal filings related to his bankruptcy case, creditors have reportedly accused Giuliani of illicitly transferring money to Ryan, a former hospital administrator and anti-vaccine activist.
Another attendee of the game, the Rev. Kate Harmon Siberine, an Episcopal priest, posted a photo of herself on social media sitting next to Giuliani at the game.
“He has done incredible harm to many, many people with the power and authority given to him,” she wrote on Facebook. “I also will not be the kind of person who wishes harm on another. I hope that he makes a full recovery from his injuries and that he will continue to be held accountable for his many crimes as he slides into the boring obscurity of all men who use their power for their own gain.”
Originally Published: September 1, 2025 at 2:03 PM EDT
