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The former aide, Charlotte Bennett, accused Cuomo of subjecting
her to "critical, sex-based comments and humiliating
assignments." She demanded a trial by jury. The lawsuit seeks
unspecified damages.
Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing. He has said his accusers
misinterpreted his words, gestures and demeanor.
"The governor has always said he didn't harass anyone, and with
each day that goes by more and more information is uncovered
showing how evidence favorable to the governor was suppressed
and crucial facts ignored or omitted that undermined witness
credibility," Cuomo's lawyer Rita Glavin said on Wednesday.
Cuomo, a Democrat, resigned in August last year after an
independent investigation initiated by New York Attorney General
Letitia James concluded that he sexually harassed 11 women. He
was in his third term as governor.
The filing, in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of
New York, also named three of Cuomo's former top aides. It
accused the former New York governor of sexual harassment,
gender discrimination and retaliation in violation of laws.
The suit alleged that Cuomo asked Bennett questions about her
sex life while they were alone in his State Capitol office
beginning in June 2020. Bennett had told investigators last year
the former governor made several inappropriate comments to her
in 2020.
In January, a fifth New York prosecutor declined criminal
charges against Cuomo related to sexual harassment claims that
led to his resignation, saying he had no legal basis to pursue a
case.
"My career as a public servant was abruptly cut short because of
Governor Cuomo's and his top aides' sexual harassment and
retaliation against me after I complained about Governor Cuomo's
misconduct," Bennett said in a statement on Wednesday.
Cuomo on Tuesday filed a complaint with an attorney grievance
committee alleging the New York attorney general displayed
professional misconduct in her investigation into sexual
harassment claims against him. James' office said the officials
involved in the probe held "themselves to the highest ethical
standards."
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; editing by Frank
McGurty and Leslie Adler)
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