Former Governor Andrew Cuomo is being sued for sexual assault by the former executive assistant who accused him of groping her at the Executive Mansion.
Brittany Commisso filed a legal summons with the state Supreme Court late Wednesday, a day before the New York Adult Survivors Act expired at the end of Thanksgiving Day. In the lawsuit, Commisso argues that she suffered not only severe harm as a result of Cuomo's "pervasive abusive conduct" but also retaliation from Cuomo's successor and then-lieutenant governor, Kathy Hochul, after reporting the alleged misconduct.
"Ms. Commisso's claims are provably false, which is why the Albany District Attorney dismissed the case two years ago after a thorough investigation," Cuomo's attorney, Rita Galvin told Newsweek on Friday. "Ms. Commisso's transparent attempt at a cash grab will fail. We look forward to seeing her in court."
Hochul's office called her name in the summons a "mistake," saying she had no decision in the reassignment of Commisso within the governor's office.
"The claim regarding then-Lieutenant Governor Hochul is clearly a mistake, as she had no control over Executive Chamber personnel decisions," Hochul spokesperson Avi Smalls told Newsweek. "We can only assume this allegation is an error in the preparation of the summons."
The New York Adult Survivors Act, which was signed into law by Hochul last year, allowed for a yearlong suspension of the typical time limit in which someone can sue for alleged sexual assault. The statute of limitations in New York State is typically three years. Commisso, who joined Cuomo's team in 2017, alleges that the abuse began in 2019.
The special state law has cleared the way for a number of high-profile lawsuits against the likes of former President Donald Trump, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs, actor Jamie Foxx, Guns N' Roses singer Axl Rose and music mogul L.A. Reid, among others. More than 2,500 lawsuits have been filed under the law, according to The Associated Press.
Commisso had first publicly accused Cuomo of groping her in 2021, alleging that the former governor "put his hand up my blouse and cupped my breast over my bra" at the governor's mansion on December 7, 2020. She was among a dozen women who came forward with allegations against Cuomo, who eventually resigned in response to the claims. Although Cuomo left office to avoid "governmental paralysis," he denied any wrongdoing, dismissing his behavior as "playful" instead.
"The continuous sexual harassment by defendant Cuomo included unwelcome sexual advances, sexualized comments about appearance and personal matters, relations, their dating, their sex life, and her marriage, assignment of humiliating and demeaning tasks, hugs, kisses, sexual touching of the buttocks, and forcible touching of the breast all of which was objectively unreasonable and abusive," the new complaint reads.
Commisso's allegations, which were among the more serious claims leveled against Cuomo, led to a misdemeanor criminal complaint being filed against the former governor in 2021. It was the only charge that Cuomo or his administration faced amid the various state investigations launched into the former governor, but it was ultimately dismissed by a judge.
The new complaint accuses Hochul, who was the lieutenant governor at the time, of demoting Commisso and removing her from the front office of the executive chamber "to the demeaning task of answering telephones in the lieutenant governor's office until moved to other offices." Commisso argues that the retaliation she faced from Hochul led to a loss of overtime pay, ostracism from her co-workers and loss of career opportunities and advancement.
The lawsuit also comes as Cuomo reportedly mulls a mayoral bid to replace Adams, who has recently become embroiled in a series of controversies, including a wide-ranging FBI investigation into his 2021 campaign and his own sexual assault lawsuit.
Commisso told the Times Union on Friday, "It disgusts me that Andrew Cuomo is even considering running for public office in the wake of Mayor Adam's alleged sexual harassment when he himself will not accept responsibility or even acknowledge his sexual harassment of me, aside from numerous other victims, while the governor of our state."
Update 11/24/23, 3:38 p.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from a Hochul spokesperson.
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Katherine Fung is a Newsweek reporter based in New York City. Her focus is reporting on U.S. and world politics. ... Read more
