The only criminal charge against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in his career-ending sexual harassment scandal has been dismissed by a New York judge.
Cuomo appeared virtually for the Albany court hearing on Friday, in which Judge Holly Trexler agreed to a joint request from prosecutors and defense attorneys to drop the charge.
‘Today reason and the rule of law prevailed, not politics, rhetoric, or mob mentality,’ Cuomo’s attorney Rita Glavin said in remarks to reporters following the hearing.
The misdemeanor complaint was filed by the local sheriff in October, accusing Cuomo of groping an aide in the executive mansion in December 2020, eight months before he resigned.
Albany County District Attorney David Soares told Judge Trexler this week that although the aide was credible, and some evidence supported her account, he believed he couldn’t win a conviction in court.
Soares and Cuomo’s attorney each asked the judge to dismiss the complaint. With an arraignment already scheduled, the judge said Cuomo and the attorneys should appear virtually for the hearing, at which she accepted the motion to dismiss.
Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made a virtual court appearance with his attorneys as the criminal groping charge against him was dismissed.
Judge Holly Trexler agreed to a joint request from prosecutors and defense attorneys to drop the charge
Prosecutors (top right) and Cuomo’s lawyer (bottom right) both asked charges be dropped
Cuomo claimed during a sworn deposition that accuser Brittany Commisso (with him above) asked for a raise during the same month as the purported groping
The judge presided over the proceeding from an Albany courtroom with the lawyers participating via videoconference.
The charges against Cuomo were based on allegations by Brittany Commisso, who said Cuomo reached up her blouse and grabbed her breast in late 2020 while they were alone in his Executive Mansion office, where she´d been summoned to help with his cellphone.
He insisted he did no such thing, saying ‘it would be an act of insanity.’
Her testimony was among the most damning in a report released in August by Democratic state Attorney General Letitia James that concluded Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women.
Cuomo resigned later that month. He has called the report unfair and has vehemently denied the groping allegation.
In a lengthy statement issued on Friday, Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi slammed the James investigation as ‘a sham to generate a press frenzy and political firestorm to clear the way for her own run for higher office.’
‘For the last several weeks, we have remained silent while the process played itself out — do not confuse our respect for the justice system with acquiescence,’ said Azzopardi. ‘Stay tuned.’
The charges against Cuomo were based on allegations by Brittany Commisso (left), who said Cuomo slid his hand up her blouse and grabbed her breast when they were alone
Brittany Commisso, 33, (left) was the first woman to take sexual assault allegations against former New York governor Andrew Cuomo to police. Alyssa McGrath (right) also leveled claims
‘Today reason and the rule of law prevailed, not politics, rhetoric, or mob mentality,’ Cuomo’s attorney Rita Glavin said in remarks to reporters following the hearing
Exterior of the Albany County City Court is shown, where former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will appear virtually for a court session before Judge Holly Trexler
District Attorney Soares has said he was caught by surprise when Sheriff Craig Apple, a fellow Democrat, filed the forcible touching complaint without consulting the prosecutor’s office.
Soares called it ‘potentially defective’ and moved to delay Cuomo´s arraignment, originally set for November.
In a letter to Trexler on Tuesday, Soares said ‘statutory elements of New York law make this case impossible to prove.’ He added that multiple government inquiries into Cuomo´s conduct had created ‘technical and procedural hurdles’ regarding prosecutors´ obligations to disclose evidence to the defense.
Some legal experts said Soares´ decision illustrated the difficulties of prosecuting sex crime allegations. But others said he should have proceeded if he considered the accuser credible.
Commisso was among the critics.
‘My disappointing experience of re-victimization with the failure to prosecute a serial sexual abuser, no matter what degree the crime committed, yet again sadly highlights the reason victims are afraid to come forward, especially against people in power,’ Commisso said in a statement to the Times Union of Albany.
‘When will our voices uniformly be accepted? Where do we go to have our rights vindicated?’ she asked
Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made a virtual appearance before an Albany judge Friday as prosecutors moved to dismiss the groping charge against him
Commisso, seen in an August interview, released a statement saying the case ‘highlights the reason victims are afraid to come forward, especially against people in power’
Reporters work on live news shots outside the Albany County City Court where former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo will appear virtually for a court session before Judge Holly Trexler
Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple speaks during a news conference at the Albany County Sheriff office after a criminal complaint was filed charging Andrew Cuomo in October
Soares, in a radio interview Friday, noted that the attorney general’s inquiry didn’t have the same legal requirements as a criminal case, and he said prosecutors can’t be swayed by public sentiment or ‘passions.’
‘It’s not for me to engage in any kind of debate with those who aren´t equipped with as much information or the obligations that I have. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, but there´s only one person with a burden of proof, and that´s me,’ he told the WAMC/Northeast Public Radio network.
‘I think the more dangerous position is to have a person in my position who will move forward, press forward, with cases because of fear of public backlash,’ he added.
Two prosecutors in the New York City suburbs separately announced last month that Cuomo would not face charges for allegations involving other women who said they had been subjected to unwanted kisses or touches.
To some legal experts and women´s advocates, Soares´ decision to seek a dismissal points to the difficulties of prosecuting sex crime allegations. But to others, it’s confounding.
‘If you have a credible witness who comes to you, you believe her, she’s cooperative, is that not enough?’ said Matthew Galluzzo, a New York City criminal defense lawyer and sex crimes prosecutor. ‘This is tremendous prosecutorial cowardice.’
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