New York on Friday agreed to pay nearly $500,000 to settle a case in which a woman accused Andrew Cuomo of sexually harassing her during his time as the State’s governor.
Brittany Commisso filed a criminal complaint against Cuomo in 2021, accusing him of reaching under her blouse and groping her breast when she was working as his aide in the governor’s office. She has also alleged he grabbed her behind on multiple occasions, kissed her on the lips, and hugged her inappropriately. Those allegations and similar charges from other women, such as Charlotte Bennett, led Cuomo to step down as governor that year.
Recommended Stories
- Trump DOJ asks judges to unseal Epstein and Maxwell grand jury records
- Federal judge blocks anti-Catholic Washington law
- Obama officials spiked intel that cleared Trump in 2016, declassified records show
“The State’s settlement with Ms. Commisso, at nearly half a million dollars, is a complete vindication of her claims, just as the repeated findings made by the Attorney General, the State Assembly, and the U.S. Department of Justice were,” Commisso’s lawyers said in a statement announcing the settlement. “Ms. Commisso is proud to have reported the truth and vindicated her rights in court, and likewise glad to be able to move forward with her life.”
Commisso and Bennett, who settled her case earlier this year, received $450,000 in settlement payments. In Bennett’s case, $350,000 went to pay her attorneys.
Cuomo, who is now running to become New York City’s mayor, has long denied all accusations of the sexual misconduct that led to his resignation. A 2024 investigation released by the Justice Department concluded that he had subjected 13 women working as state employees to a “sexually hostile work environment.”
A 2021 investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James reported that Cuomo sexually harassed a total of 11 women, repeatedly engaged “in unwelcome and nonconsensual touching,” and created a culture of “retaliatory” behavior by “intend[ing] to discredit and disparage” some female aides and staffers who sought to report their experiences.
Cuomo’s lawyers criticized the settlement Friday, saying it “expressly does not include any admission of liability.”
‘NO ENERGY’ CUOMO DOES NOT HAVE A CASE TO STAY IN NYC MAYORAL RACE: JOE CONCHA
“We oppose the dismissal of Ms. Commisso’s lawsuit because it is in the public interest for the public to see the evidence that New York taxpayers paid to obtain. Until the truth is revealed, the lawsuit should not be dismissed,” their statement said.
“Through legal discovery paid for by public funds, we now know that Ms. Commisso withheld hundreds of text messages from the Attorney General, the Assembly, and the DA, which we have reviewed and which obliterate her allegations against Governor Cuomo. Today’s settlement is an effort to prevent those damning texts from ever seeing the light of day,” the statement continued. “Just like the State’s past settlement, the timing of this agreement is specifically designed to avoid Ms. Commisso’s upcoming deposition in her case, where she would have to testify under oath about this devastating evidence we uncovered. The settlement is not a vindication; it is capitulation to avoid the truth.”