New York Attorney General Leticia James said Sunday night that her office hopes to receive a “subpoena referral” to investigate allegations of sexual harassment against Governor Andrew Cuomo.
“The referral would be made exclusively to the attorney general’s office,” added James. “This is not a responsibility that we take lightly. We will hire a law firm, appoint them as lawyers for our office and supervise a rigorous and independent investigation.”
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The announcement came after James called for a “truly independent investigation” on Sunday to “completely revise these disturbing allegations against the governor”.
“Allegations of sexual harassment should always be taken seriously,” she said. “I am ready to supervise this investigation and make the necessary appointments.”
Under state law, the investigation can only be carried out “through an official referral from the governor’s office” and “must include subpoena power,” noted James.
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Representatives from Cuomo’s office said in a statement to FOX News on Sunday that they had already given up on their choice to oversee the investigation, paving the way for James and the chief judge of the Court of Appeals, Janet DiFiore, to select an independent lawyer to create a public report on complaints.
“We selected former federal judge Barbara Jones, with an excellent track record in qualifications and integrity, but we want to avoid even perceiving a lack of independence or political inference,” Beth Garvey, special governor and senior adviser to the governor, said.
Garvey noted that Cuomo’s office asked James and DiFiore to “jointly select an independent and qualified lawyer in private practice, without political affiliation, to conduct a thorough review of the matter and issue a public report.”
“The proceeds of the work will be controlled exclusively by that independent lawyer personally selected by the Attorney General and the Chief Judge,” she continued. “All members of the governor’s office will cooperate fully. We will have no further comment until the report is published.”
In a shorter statement, Garvey added: “We will leave all decisions regarding the investigation to be made at the discretion of the independent lawyer selected by the Attorney General and the Chief Judge.”
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In a second e-mail to Fox News on Sunday, James said he rejected the proposal sent by Cuomo’s office because it included the chief judge. The attorney general again summoned Cuomo to make a referral with subpoena power as needed to initiate an independent investigation.
“To clarify, I don’t accept the governor’s proposal,” James said in a follow-up statement. “The state’s Executive Law clearly gives my office the authority to investigate this matter as soon as the governor provides a reference. Although I have deep respect for Chief Judge DiFiore, I am the duly elected attorney general and it is my responsibility to fulfill this task, according to with the Executive Law. The governor must provide this reference so that an independent investigation with subpoena power can be conducted. “
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Charlotte Bennett, a health policy adviser in the Democratic governor’s administration until November, told The New York Times that Cuomo was asking inappropriate questions about her sex life, including whether she has ever had sex with older men.
In addition, Lindsey Boylan, a former undersecretary for economic development and special adviser to the governor, recently accused Cuomo in a condemnatory essay published on Wednesday of “going out of his way to touch me on the lower back, arms and legs”, kissing her forcibly on the lips during an individual meeting and suggesting that they “play strip poker” during an airplane trip.
In a statement describing previous interactions with employees, Cuomo said, “I never intended to offend anyone or cause any harm. I spent most of my life at work and colleagues are often also personal friends.”
“Sometimes, at work, I think I’m joking and I make jokes that I think are funny. Sometimes, I tease people in a way that I think is humorous, ”explained the governor. “I do it in public and in private. You saw me do it at briefings hundreds of times. I teased people about their personal lives, their relationships, about getting married or not getting married. I don’t want to offend and just try to add a little of levity and playfulness to what is a very serious business. “
“Now I understand that my interactions may have been insensitive or very personal and that some of my comments, due to my position, made others feel in ways I never intended,” continued Cuomo. “I acknowledge that some of the things I said were misinterpreted as unwanted flirting. To the extent that someone felt that way, I’m really sorry about that.”
However, he explicitly denied that he “touched anyone” and “never made proposals to anyone”, directly contradicting Boylan’s claims. Cuomo’s office previously denied Boylan’s allegations of harassment, calling them “simply false” and insisting that the strip poker comment “did not happen”.
“I never intended to make anyone feel uncomfortable, but these are claims that New Yorkers deserve answers to,” said Cuomo. “That’s why I asked for an external, independent review to look at these claims.”
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“Separately, my office has anecdotally heard that some people have contacted Ms. [Charlotte] Bennett to express displeasure at her for speaking out, “added Cuomo.” My message to anyone who is doing this is that you misjudged what matters to me and my administration and must stop now – period. “
In a press release on Saturday, Cuomo called Bennett “a valuable and hardworking member of our team during COVID”, who has “every right to speak up”.
“When she came to me and talked about being a sexual assault survivor and how it shaped her and her continued efforts to create an organization that would empower her voice to help other survivors, I tried to support and help,” said Cuomo in a statement, which was issued to the Times. “Mrs. Bennett’s initial impression was right: I was trying to be a mentor to her. I never made any progress towards Ms. Bennett nor did I intend to act inappropriately. The last thing I wanted was to do it feel any of the things that are being reported. “
Cuomo, however, said he had authorized an external review of Bennett’s claims.
Neither Boylan nor Bennett responded to Fox News’s requests for comment.
Joseph Wulfson, Danielle Wallace and Bradford Betz of Fox News contributed to this report