Mike Lindell must fork over more than $50K for 'frivolous' Smartmatic claims: reporter

Trump-supporting pillow salesman Mike Lindell has been ordered by a court to fork over more than $50,000 to electronic voting systems company Smartmatic after he unsuccessfully sued them for racketeering several years ago.

As reported by Reuters legal reporter Brad Heath on BlueSky, United States District Judge Carl Nichols ordered Lindell to "pay $56,369 in sanctions for making frivolous claims against Smartmatic."

Lindell's racketeering lawsuit against Smartmatic was tossed by courts in 2022, and Law and Crime reported last year that the firm's attorneys were pushing courts to get on with leveling sanctions against Lindell.

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The sanctions against Lindell are likely small compared to what he could be forced to pay as a result of Smartmatic's defamation lawsuit against him, and Heath notes that "there is still no trial date in the lawsuit that accuses... Lindell of falsely claiming voting companies rigged the 2020 election so he could sell more pillows."

MyPillow has been showing signs of financial distress in recent months, as this past fall it was revealed that the firm was so desperate for cash that it took out a loan with an interest rate of 360 percent.