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AG James Taps Former Federal Prosecutor And Employment Discrimination Lawyer To Probe Sexual Harassment Claims Against Governor Cuomo
By
Gwynne Hogan
and
Brigid Bergin
Published Mar 8, 2021
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Mary Altaffer/AP/Shutterstock
By
Gwynne Hogan
and
Brigid Bergin
Published Mar 8, 2021
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Attorney General Letitia James has selected a former federal prosecutor and an employment discrimination attorney to spearhead her office’s investigation of sexual harrassment allegations against Governor Andrew Cuomo.
“We are committed to an independent and thorough investigation of the facts,” James said in a statement announcing that former Acting U.S Attorney for the Southern District of New York Joon H. Kim and Anne L. Clark would lead the office’s probe. “There is no question that they both have the knowledge and background necessary to lead this investigation and provide New Yorkers with the answers they deserve.”
Kim is a partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, who previously served March 2017 to January 2018 as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, replacing Preet Bahara. Kim was involved in the early stages of the corruption case against Joe Percoco, Cuomo’s top aide as well as in preparations for re-trials of other former Cuomo allies including Dean Skelos, former Republican State Senate Majority Leader and Sheldon Silver, the former Democratic speaker of the State Assembly.
Clark is a partner at Vladeck, Raskin & Clark, P.C., focusing on employment law, sexual harassment cases, and other forms of employment discriminaiton. She recently represented a professor who said she was denied tenure at City College because she had multiple sclerosis.
Attorney Debra Katz, who is representing Charlotte Bennett, the second former gubernatorial aide to come forward with allegations of sexual harassment, said she was heartened by James’ choice of Kim and Clark.
“[The selection] demonstrates that Attorney General Letitia James is taking this matter very seriously,” Katz said. “We are encouraged by the experience and background of the attorneys who will be investigating Charlotte’s claims and expect the investigation will extend to the claims of the other women who we know to be out there.”
The attorney general’s office has the power to conduct a wide-ranging investigation; to issue subpoenas for documents and to call witnesses including potentially the governor himself, abilities that James argued for after Cuomo had initially tried to appoint a longtime ally to conduct an investigation. Facing pushback, Cuomo then offered to allow a joint investigation overseen by James and the Chief Judge of the State Court of Appeals, Janet DiFiore, a Cuomo appointee. Amid public outcry, Cuomo eventually relented and sent James a letter of referral, which allowed her to proceed with her own independent investigation.
Susan Lerner, the executive director of Common Cause New York also applauded the appointment. “Clark and Kim are independent and unimpeachable, demonstrating a deep understanding of both Albany politics and sexual harassment law,” she said.
Five women, four of whom worked for Cuomo, have now accused Cuomo of inappropriate sexual conduct. Lindsey Boylan said the governor touched parts of her body, joked about playing “strip poker,” and kissed her when she worked in his offices between 2015 and 2018. A second aide, Charlotte Bennett said he asked sexually explicit questions last year, like whether she would date older men and whether being a survivor of sexual assault made it hard for her to be intimate with partners.
Ana Liss, who worked in Cuomo’s Albany offices between 2013 and 2015, described being kissed on the cheek and told to wear heels when Cuomo was in the office. And Karen Hinton recalled an incident in 2000, when Cuomo was the head of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and she was press secretary, where he summoned her to a dimly lit hotel room and drew her in for a long embrace she managed to back out of.
A fifth accuser, Anna Ruch, met the governor in passing at a wedding, where she says he grabbed her back, then her face, and kissed her on the cheek against her will.
Last week, Cuomo apologized for making anyone feel uncomfortable, but denied touching anyone inappropriately.
Following new allegations from Liss and Hinton, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins called for the Governor’s resignation on Sunday. State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie hedged his comments slightly, saying he agreed with the sentiment of Stewart-Cousins remarks, but added that Cuomo should “seriously consider whether he can effectively meet the needs of the people of New York."
Cuomo has repeatedly dismissed calls for his resignation, going so far as saying on Sunday that doing so would be “anti-democratic.” (Cuomo had previously called for the resignation of Eric Schneiderman after allegations emerged he’d physically abused romantic partners.)
“There is politics in politics," he said, on a conference call with reporters Sunday afternoon. "They don't override the people's will. They don't override elections. They don't get to hear an allegation and make a determination on the allegation."
By Monday afternoon, some other Democrats were pushing a more cautious approach. Twenty-one female assembly members sent out a statement urging patience while James investigates the harassment claims.
"We believe the attorney general will exercise due process and expediency in her deliberations," the statement reads. "We request that she be allowed the appropriate time to complete her investigations rather than undermine her role and responsibility as the chief law enforcement officer in the State of New York."
Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman, who represents Springfield Gardens in Queens, signed on to see that AG James carries out the investigation of the governor, as opposed to supporting calls for his immediate resignation. She urged women to go to the attorney general’s office with allegations of sexual harassment, rather than to reporters.
"I think that muddies the waters [preventing] a clearer investigation that's not tried in the court of public opinion first,” she said. "We pushed for discovery, which means all the evidence should be out in the open," said Hyndman. "In this instance, we have our chief prosecutor, our Attorney General empowered to do her job and this should not be taken out of her hands.”
But some assemblymembers rejected that thinking, arguing James can still investigate sexual harassment whether or not Cuomo is in office.
"James’ ability to do her job does not hinge on whether he's in office or not...She still has a task and she's going to complete it,” said Assemblymember Catalina Cruz, who was one of 31 Democratic women who did not sign the letter. "New Yorkers are also entitled to have leadership that is effective and is really getting the work done. And right now we're not getting the work done.”
Update, March 11, 2021: The Attorney General's investigators have created a website, AG Independent Investigation, to field information for their probe. The website says, "This website was created by the Special Deputies to the First Deputy Attorney General of New York to gather information relating to the investigation into sexual harassment allegations against New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. If you have information relevant to the investigation, you can contact the Special Deputies in the following ways: 212-225-3100 for voice messages; [email protected]; 518-545-0870 for text messages."
Tagged
investigation
Governor Andrew Cuomo
governor cuomo
sexual harassment
letitia james
Cuomo in Crisis
Gwynne Hogan
Gwynne Hogan is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Brigid Bergin
Brigid Bergin is an award-winning senior reporter on the People and Power desk. She is fiercely committed to telling stories that help people engage and support democracy. In 2022, she hosted a live, ten-week call-in politics show ahead of the midterm elections called The People's Guide to Power. Brigid's reporting in 2017 included some of the first coverage of a political newcomer now known as AOC. In 2016, she broke the news of a voter purge in Brooklyn just days before New York’s presidential primary, triggering city, state and federal investigations. Brigid also guest hosts The Brian Lehrer Show and All Of It. She graduated from the University at Albany and the CUNY Newmark School of Journalism. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-723-4719.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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