Jan. 8 (UPI) — A New York judge on Friday agreed to drop a criminal complaint accusing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo of forcible touching.
Albany County District Attorney David Soares said earlier this week that prosecutors didn’t have enough evidence to pursue the accusations, Politico reported. Judge Holly Trexler agreed to drop the case Friday in a 7-minute virtual hearing in Albany City Court.
“The district attorney’s office has unfettered discretion … to prosecute a particular case,” she said. “The courts may not and cannot interfere with the discretion of a district attorney.”
The New York Times said the hearing was the first public appearance of Cuomo since he resigned as governor in August.
The criminal complaint stems from accusations made by Brittany Commisso, an executive assistant in the executive chamber. Her testimony — and that of 10 other accusers — was part of a New York State Assembly Judiciary Committee investigation that found that Cuomo engaged in sexual harassment.
Commisso said Cuomo groped her in the Executive Mansion in 2020. Soares said that while the accusations were troubling and credible, prosecutors wouldn’t be able to meet their burden at trial.
Cuomo’s attorney, Rita Glavin, praised the judge’s decision to drop the case.
“As the governor has said, this simply did not happen,” she told reporters.
