Sexual harassment: Independent investigators find Gov Cuomo guilty

New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo, has been found guilty in a report released by the independent investigators appointed by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The investigation team led by Joon H. Kim and Anne L. Clark released its report into the multiple allegations of sexual harassment by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

According to the report on Tuesday August 3, 2021, after nearly five months, the investigators concluded that Governor Cuomo “did sexually harass multiple women, including former and current state employees, by engaging in unwanted groping, kissing, and hugging, and making inappropriate comments”.

“The governor and his senior staff took actions to retaliate against at least one former employee for coming forward with her story.

“The Executive Chamber fostered a toxic workplace that enabled harassment to occur and created a hostile work environment,” the report reads.

It was alleged that Governor Cuomo’s actions and those of the Executive Chamber violated multiple state and federal laws, as well as the Executive Chamber’s written policies.

The investigation was conducted after, on March 1, 2021, the Executive Chamber made a referral, according to New York Executive Law Section 63(8), for Attorney General James to select independent lawyers to investigate “allegations of and circumstances surrounding sexual harassment claims made against the governor.”

Reacting to the report, New York Attorney, General James, stated, “This is a sad day for New York because independent investigators have concluded that Governor Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women and, in doing so, broke the law.”

She added, “I am grateful to all the women who came forward to tell their stories in painstaking detail, enabling investigators to get to the truth. No man — no matter how powerful — can be allowed to harass women or violate our human rights laws, period.”

Starting in December 2020, multiple women came forward with allegations that Governor Cuomo sexually harassed them.

Throughout the investigation, the investigators interviewed 179 individuals. Those interviewed included complainants, current and former members of the Executive Chamber, State Troopers, additional state employees, and others who interacted regularly with the governor.

More than 74,000 documents, emails, texts, and pictures were also reviewed as evidence during the investigation.

Backed up by corroborating evidence and credible witnesses, the investigators detail multiple current or former New York state employees or women outside state service who were the targets of harassing conduct on the part of the governor.

As part of the investigation, Governor Cuomo also sat with the interviewers and answered questions under oath. While the governor denied the most serious allegations, the investigators found that he did so by offering “blanket denials” or that he had a “lack of recollection as to specific incidents.”

The investigators also found that the governor’s recollection “stood in stark contrast to the strength, specificity, and corroboration of the complainants’ recollections, as well as the reports of many other individuals who offered observations and experiences of the governor’s conduct.”

The investigators also found that the Executive Chamber was “rife with fear and intimidation” that not only “enabled the above-described instances of harassment to occur,” but also “created a hostile work environment overall.”