A judge dismissed the criminal case opened against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for alleged sexual touching, one of the complaints of sexual harassment against the former president that precipitated his resignation from office last year.
The decision of Magistrate Holly Trexler, of the Albany district, comes after the Prosecutor's Office announced this week that it was not going to continue with the criminal prosecution of the case.
Although
the complaint is considered "credible," the prosecution said, it would be impossible to prove the case at trial
.
A report published by the New York Attorney General's Office in August 2021 with the testimonies of former employees of the former governor stated that he had sexually harassed 11 women, many of them from his work environment.
Multiple investigations have concluded that Andrew Cuomo harassed women.Getty Images
The charge dismissed this Friday is the only one that had advanced in the criminal sphere (unlike a civil case, which is less serious) of those complaints.
It had been presented in October.
It was an accusation brought by Britanny Commisso, an employee of the governor's office, who claimed that Cuomo touched her breast in November 2020 when they were working and also denounced a pattern of inappropriate behavior that began with "suggestive comments that led to in strong hugs and kisses on the cheek ”.
Two other prosecutors, from Westchester County and Nassau County, have also decided not to advance some of the cases that allegedly happened in their jurisdictions.
[New York Governor Andrew Cuomo resigns after 11 complaints from women of sexual harassment in their work environment]
Although Cuomo will not be prosecuted by criminal means, several investigations - including one commissioned by the state legislature to an external firm -
have concluded that the politician sexually harassed several workers
.
The former governor has acknowledged that some of his behavior may have been inappropriate, although he has always defended that he did not act with malicious intent.
Denial of complaint against Andrew Cuomo for alleged sexual touching
Jan. 4, 202200: 29
“
I take full responsibility for my actions
(...).
In my mind I have never crossed a line with anyone, but I did not realize how the lines have been redrawn.
There are generational and cultural changes that I simply did not fully appreciate and there should be no excuses, "he said last August when announcing his resignation.
The scandal over the accusations against him not only affected his political career but also that of some of his allies.
His brother, the journalist
and host
Chris Cuomo
, was permanently suspended by the CNN news network for his key role in the former governor's defense strategy against the allegations, including while reporting on the issue.
With information from
Agencia EFE
.
