An Albany judge on Friday dismissed class A misdemeanor sexual harassment charges against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who resigned in August in disgrace after numerous allegations surfaced.
Judge Holly Trexler granted Cuomo’s lawyers’ motion to dismiss the case, which prosecutors with the office of Albany County District Attorney David Soares did not challenge. Trexler then sealed the case file, preventing the court record from being accessible by the public so as to avoid harm to the individuals involved.
“This court is acutely aware of the fact that the district attorney’s office has unfettered discretion to determine whether to prosecute a particular suspect or case,” the judge said. “And, that superior courts have in the state of New York have long and consistently held that the courts may not and should not interfere with the discretion of a district attorney.”
The original complaint was filed by the office of Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple in late October 2021, detailing accusations of forcible touching by the former governor, which is prohibited by Section 130.52 of the New York State Penal Law.
Earlier this week, the Albany County District Attorney’s office announced it was dropping criminal charges of forcible touching against Cuomo just days before he was set to be arraigned. The incident allegedly happened on the second floor of the governor’s mansion between 3:51 p.m. and 4:07 p.m. on December 7, 2020, when a female aide said Cuomo groped her. The complaint said he intentionally “and for no legitimate purpose, forcibly placed his hand under the blouse shirt of the victim … and onto her intimate body part.”
“Specifically, the [victim’s] left breast for the purposes of degrading and gratifying his sexual desires,” the complaint said.
Soares dismissed the charges against Cuomo despite acknowledging that his alleged victim’s claim was “credible.”
“After review of all the available evidence we have concluded that we cannot meet our burden at trial,” Soares said in a statement. “As such we have notified the Court that we are declining to prosecute this matter and requesting the charges filed by the Albany County Sheriff be dismissed.”