New York Governor Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women, report finds; he vows not to resign

NEW YORK, Aug 3 (Reuters) – New York Governor Andrew Cuomo fondled, kissed, or made suggestive comments on 11 women in violation of the law, the attorney general said Tuesday, prompting local prosecutors to file a criminal record To initiate an investigation and renew demands for him to resign or be charged.

A five-month investigation into allegations of sexual harassment revealed that the governor had created a “toxic” job and that his office unlawfully retaliated against the first accuser to go public.

After Attorney General Letitia James revealed the investigation’s conclusions, President Joe Biden and other prominent Democrats called on the former party’s star to resign.

But in a video statement released after James’ briefing, Cuomo, 63, made it clear he had no intention of doing so and denied having acted inappropriately.

“The facts are very different from what was presented,” said Cuomo.

Cuomo, a third-term Democratic governor who has been in office since 2011, said the results were imprecise and unfair. He said his accusers misinterpreted his words, gestures and behavior and insisted that his behavior was always aimed at imparting warmth to women.

The investigation marked a quick fall for a governor who became a popular national figure in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic by presenting himself as an authoritative presence at daily press conferences. Continue reading

The results, cited in a damning 168-page report, could deal a devastating blow to Cuomo – who was once considered a possible presidential candidate and former US Secretary of Housing under President Bill Clinton – and hamper his administration.

“What this investigation found was a worrying pattern of behavior on the part of the governor of the great state of New York,” said James, also a Democrat. “These 11 women were in a hostile and toxic work environment.

Biden told reporters at the White House, “I think he should step down.”

“I’m sure there have been some hugs that were completely innocent. But apparently the attorney general decided there were things that weren’t, ”Biden said.

The spokesman for the Democrat-controlled New York Assembly said an impeachment investigation will be completed “as soon as possible” after evidence from James’ investigation is available.

The civil investigation found that Cuomo and his senior advisors ‘actions “violated several state and federal laws,” said James’ office, but they did not pursue any criminal charges.

After the report was released, Albany County District Attorney David Soares announced that his office had opened an investigation to determine whether the behavior had resulted in a crime. Albany County is home to the city of Albany, capital of New York State.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo makes a statement in this screenshot taken from a pre-recorded video released by the New York Governor’s office on August 3, 2021 in New York, United States. Governor’s Office Andrew M. Cuomo / Handout via REUTERS

Continue reading

Soares also requested evidence from the investigation and welcomed “any victim” to come forward.

“CLIMATE OF FEAR”

Investigators spoke to 179 people, James said. The investigation revealed a “climate of fear” in which Cuomo sexually molested several women, many of them young, she said.

While many of the allegations were previously known, the briefing’s investigators revealed some new details based on what Cuomo’s accusers told them.

Anne Clark, one of the two lawyers who led the investigation, said one of the women Cuomo targeted was a police officer. The governor stood behind her in an elevator and “ran his finger from her neck over her spine and said, ‘Hey,'”.

Cuomo, a divorced father of three adult daughters, said he was sorry if his conduct was misunderstood by his accusers. He also said he would “not be distracted from his work fighting the COVID-19 pandemic”.

“I want you to know directly from me that I have never touched anyone inappropriately or made inappropriate sexual advances,” Cuomo said in the video statement. “I’m 63 years old. I’ve been in public my entire adult life. I’m just not. And I’ve never been.”

“REEF WITH BULLYING”

James himself is a rising star in the Democratic Party who legally challenged the National Rifle Association in the state after being catapulted from public attorney in New York City to attorney general in 2018.

She appointed two seasoned outside attorneys to conduct the investigation: Joon Kim, a former federal attorney and acting US attorney in Manhattan, and Clark, an employment attorney with experience in sexual harassment cases.

Kim said Cuomo’s workplace was “full of bullying, fear and intimidation” where the crossing by him or his senior staff meant they were being “written off, brushed aside or worse.”

The report rejected Cuomo’s suggestions that his behavior was an innocent reflection of the loving Italian-American culture in which he grew up. Investigators found little credibility in his “plausible denials and lack of memory of certain incidents”.

“What these witnesses – and many others – described wasn’t just old-fashioned, loving behavior – it was sexual harassment,” the report concluded.

Rita Glavin, an attorney defending Cuomo against the sexual harassment complaints, released a lengthy “position statement” in response to the report saying that she “is deliberately omitting important evidence”. Glavin accused James of bias.

Glavin’s testimony included pages of photos of Cuomo hugging or kissing prominent political figures, including Biden, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, and Al Gore. It also contained several photos of Cuomo kissing his late father Mario Cuomo, who also served as New York Governor.

Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York and Nathan Layne in Wilton, Connecticut; Additional reporting from Trevor Hunnicutt, Jan Wolfe and Maria Caspani; Letter from Daniel Trotta; Editing by Will Dunham, Jonathan Oatis, Sonya Hepinstall and Leslie Adler

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.