Former N.Y. Gov. Cuomo Files Misconduct Complaint Against State Attorney General Letitia James
Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo filed a formal state ethics complaint on Tuesday (Sept. 13) against state Attorney General Letitia James and the independent investigators who examined sexual harassment allegations against him.
The complaint, filed with a state judicial committee that reviews alleged attorney misconduct, accuses James of deliberately mishandling an investigation overseen by her office, whose report concluded Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women.
It led to his resignation in August 2021 to avoid likely impeachment by the state legislature. But the former governor has always maintained that he’s innocent.
“She engaged in a terrible and quite obvious manipulation of facts, evidence and the law, furthered a false narrative about me, and hid evidence that undermined the report from the media and the public,” the New York Daily News quotes Cuomo’s 48-page complaint.
James, who announced her candidacy for governor after Cuomo resigned, “had her own politically motivated and self-interest driven agenda,” the governor said, according to New York station WABC.
Cuomo urges the committee to discipline James and independent lawyers Joon Kim and Anne Clark, who were involved in the probe. He argues that they violated rules of professional conduct, including one barring lawyers from engaging “in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation.”
A representative for James’ office said the attorney general, Kim and Clark hold themselves to the “highest ethical standards,” the Daily News reported.
According to The New York Times, the state Supreme Court appoints members of the attorney grievance committee. The members could dismiss the complaint because of insufficient evidence, launch its own investigation or begin disciplinary proceedings. Disciplinary action could range from a confidential letter of admonishment to disbarment.
James, the first African American and woman attorney general in New York history, was supported by Cuomo in her campaign, and it was Cuomo who referred the matter to James’ office. Opponents argued that her close relationship to the governor would compromise her integrity, so she appointed independent investigators and oversaw their work. After the release of the findings, James said the state “had an obligation to protect women in their workplace.”
The report prompted five district attorneys to open investigations into Cuomo’s alleged sexual misconduct but concluded that there were insufficient legal grounds to bring criminal charges against him, despite finding the allegation credible.
