Andrew Cuomo’s former executive assistant, who accused him of sexual harassment and groping her in 2021, has filed a lawsuit against him under the Adult Survivors Act.
Brittany Commisso claims that Cuomo groped her in 2020 while he was still the governor of New York and retaliated against her when she rejected him and refused to perform sex acts.
Cuomo resigned in 2021 after being accused of sexual harassment by 11 women.
Commisso told CBS News in 2021 that Cuomo had closed the door to a room at the Governor’s Mansion that she was in and “put his hand up my blouse and cupped my breast over my bra.”
In an exclusive interview with @CBSThisMorning & @timesunion, Brittany Commisso, an Executive Assistant at NY Gov. Cuomo’s office says he groped and sexually harassed her — allegations he denies.
“The governor needs to be held accountable… What he did to me was a crime.” pic.twitter.com/uPuZiuEKq9
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) August 9, 2021
“I exactly remember looking down, seeing his hand, which is a large hand, thinking to myself, ‘Oh, my God. This is happening,’” she said. “It happened so quick, he didn’t say anything. When I stopped it, he just pulled away and walked away.”
Commisso’s claims were investigated and found to be credible, but prosecutors declined to charge Cuomo.
“While we found the complainant in this case cooperative and credible, after review of all the available evidence we have concluded that we cannot meet our burden at trial,” District Attorney David Soares said, according to a report from The Hill.
Cuomo’s attorney, Rita Glavin, has claimed that her client is innocent and will fight the allegations in court.
“Ms. Commisso’s claims are provably false, which is why the Albany County District Attorney dismissed the case two years ago after a thorough investigation,” Glavin said in a statement to The Hill. “Ms. Commisso’s transparent attempt at a cash grab will fail. We look forward to seeing her in court.”
Under the New York Adult Survivors Act, victims of sex crimes can sue their alleged abusers without any statute of limitations.
“More than 2,500 lawsuits have been filed so far under the law, which created a yearlong suspension of the usual time limit to sue over an alleged sexual assault. That suspension ends Friday,” The Hill noted.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Cuomo is considering running for New York City mayor, as Mayor Eric Adams is becoming increasingly unpopular in the polls.
“I got the impression that he is ready,” Rev. Ruben Diaz Sr., a former state senator and ex-member of the New York City Council, who spoke to Cuomo last week, told Politico. “No one knows what’s going to happen in the city.”
“My opinion is if he runs, he will win,” Diaz said of Cuomo in an interview. “People are in need of a leader. Even though Governor Cuomo and I have our differences, we’ve had many fights in the past, and besides the differences, I think he was a great governor.”
