New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday he announced that he will file a defamation lawsuit against a former aide, who he previously filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against, claiming that he defamed her in this way.
“The nature of this action is to recover damages and punitive damages for the serious injuries and losses that Governor Cuomo has suffered and will continue to suffer as a result of the false statement of December 9, 2024 by Bennett and his representatives of that Governor Cuomo” about sex. abuse 'Bennett,'” reads the legal notice issued by Cuomo against Charlotte Bennett on Thursday.
“Bennett's representatives wrote this statement on December 9, 2024 with the headline: “Debra Katz and Charlotte Bennett issued statements regarding the news that Bennett voluntarily dismissed his case in US District Court in SDNY against Andrew Cuomo, who sexually assaulted her.” Bennett retweeted his representatives' tweet, which has garnered more than 90,000 views. The defamatory December 9th Statement – which was intended to be published and widely circulated and which was made after many of Bennett's and his agents' initial allegations against Governor Cuomo – was false and is defamatory, and Bennett made it knowing full well that it was false and intended to cause harm to Governor Cuomo.”
Bennett was one of several women who accused Cuomo of sexual harassment, which ultimately implicated him. to retire in 2021.
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Former Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that he will file a defamation suit against former aide Charlotte Bennett on Thursday. (Getty Images)
“I wouldn't want to be a helper in any way, and I think that under the circumstances, the best way I can help now is if I step aside and let the government go back to power, by well, that's what I'm going to do.” Cuomo said at the time that he denied the allegations against him and argued that federal investigators from the office of Attorney General Letitia James were biased against him.
I slipped and called people 'honey,' 'sweetheart' and 'darling.' I mean it's lovely, but women found it old fashioned and offensive,” Cuomo said at the time. “I take full responsibility for my actions. I am very friendly with people. My humor can be irreverent and self-deprecating.”
In my mind, I never crossed the line with anyone, but I didn't realize how much the line had been redrawn,” he added. “There are generational and cultural changes that I which I did not fully appreciate. And I should have, there are no excuses.”
Bennett he withdrew his case against Cuomo, which he introduced in 2022, this December on the eve of putting his case to trial.
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“Since Ms. Bennett filed her lawsuit in federal court in September 2022, former Governor Cuomo has used every opportunity to harass our client with an incredible number of discovery requests and outrageous statements in his lawsuit against embarrass and humiliate him,” Bennett's attorney, Debra Katz. , said in a statement when the case was dismissed on December 9. “These include medical applications. records of unrelated professionals, including gynecologists, ophthalmologists and others, as well as medical records dating back more than ten years since at a young age.”
“This fishing trip was designed to dig up material that will harm our client and distract from the fact that Mr. Cuomo did it, as the New York Attorney General's Office later determined.” a lengthy investigation, sexually harassing Ms. Bennett and at least 11 other women. It's also important not to forget that before he engaged in his multi-year, multi-million dollar legal battle against Mrs. Bennett – sponsored by Funded by NY State Taxpayers – Mr. Cuomo apologized for his behavior at a press conference in March 2021, he apologized for 'making anyone feel uncomfortable' and for ' any pain I've caused anyone,' and he said, 'I accept some of the things I've said have been misconstrued as unwanted flirting to that extent anyone who how he felt about it, I'm sorry about that.' His apologies were empty.
Richard Azzopardi, Cuomo's representative, praised Bennett's decision to drop the case at the time, saying his allegations “damaged” the former governor “for years.”
Gov. Andrew Cuomo prepares to board a plane after announcing his resignation, Aug. 10, 2021, New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
“Ms. Bennett's decision to drop her baseless lawsuit should be seen as a total surrender and a concerted effort to avoid facing a mountain of discovery – including texts and videos from the past This one that the AG's office did not find – which completely contradicts his allegations,” Governor Cuomo said, in a statement to Fox News Digital.
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“After defaming Governor Cuomo for years, Ms. Bennett abruptly dropped her lawsuit on the night of his inauguration to avoid admitting under oath that her allegations were false, and that “His allegations are baseless,” he said. “If New York State gives in to its campaign of public pressure and settles, it will not be good and should require all evidence to be released so that New Yorkers can know the truth : Governor Cuomo has never sexually assaulted anyone.”
Katz disputed Cuomo's announcement of the appeal in a statement to the Times Union, calling it “nonsensical.”
“There is a long history of using spoliation cases to silence and punish sexual assault accusers,” Katz said. “It's unfortunate that Mr. Cuomo seems to have chosen to go that route.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Katz for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Cuomo's notice states that Bennett “scornfully used interviews” with Cuomo to “advance” his career and that his “false allegations contributed to the discrediting of Governor Cuomo.”
Fox News Digital's Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report