Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Photo: Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images
A misdemeanor complaint alleging a sex crime has been filed in Albany City Court against former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Why it matters: Cuomo resigned from his post in August after an independent investigation found he had sexually harassed multiple women in violation of federal and state law. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
- Cuomo's lawyer Rita Glavin issued a statement saying that the former governor "has never assaulted anyone" and accused Albany County sheriff Craig Apple of impropriety.
- "This is not professional law enforcement; this is politics," Glavin said. She also said that the county sheriff did not tell the district attorney about the complaint and accused his office of leaking grand jury information.
- “Like the rest of the public, we were surprised to learn today that a criminal complaint was filed in Albany City Court by the Albany County Sheriff’s Office against Andrew Cuomo," Albany County district attorney David Soares said in a statement.
State of play: The complaint alleges that during an interaction at the governor's executive mansion in Albany on the afternoon of Dec. 7, 2020, Cuomo reached under the victim's shirt and groped her chest.
The big picture: Beginning in December, 11 women accused Cuomo of inappropriate behavior, including unwanted kissing, groping, invites to play strip poker and unsolicited comments about their sex lives.
- A majority of the women had worked with or for the governor.
- Cuomo resisted repeated calls for his resignation from nearly every prominent Democrat in the country before ultimately choosing to frame his resignation as a necessary step given the impeachment proceedings against him.
Read the full complaint via New York Focus: