Cuomo still has to show up for court date in sex-crime case: source
Disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo will have to appear in Albany court “in some form” Friday, when a judge is expected to toss misdemeanor sex-crimes charges for allegedly groping a former aide, a court source told The Post.
Cuomo, 64, was due to be arraigned on Friday on the charges, but Albany County District Attorney David Soares announced Tuesday that he was dropping the case.
Soares said that while prosecutors found the alleged victim, Brittany Commisso, “cooperative and credible,” his office wouldn’t have been able to prove the allegations at trial.
A court source said that Cuomo’s 1:30 p.m. Friday hearing was still on the books, and that he would have to appear either in-person, virtually or via his attorney.
Commisso, 33, had lodged the most serious public accusation against Cuomo, alleging he pulled her in for a hug, reached under her blouse and fondled one of her breasts in the Executive Mansion in late 2020.
In a letter to Albany City Court Judge Holly Trexler on Tuesday, Soares wrote that “Statutory elements of New York law make this case impossible to prove,” but did not provide details.
Soares didn’t go into specifics, but a source with knowledge of the investigation said: “There are things that she said that would make the prosecution difficult because of evidence and statements already in the public domain.”
The source pointed to a report from The Times-Union of Albany that said one of the prosecutors’ concerns stemmed from Commisso’s statement that she had nervously told Cuomo, “You’re going to get us in trouble” when he hugged her in a sexually aggressive way.
Soares said in his letter that the multiple governmental probes into Cuomo’s alleged misconduct had also caused “technical and procedural hurdles” regarding the obligation of prosecutors to disclose evidence to the defense.
Prosecutors considered other potential criminal charges but concluded that none fit the allegations, Soares added.
A court source said that Cuomo’s 1:30 p.m. Friday hearing was still on the books, and that he would have to appear either in-person, virtually or via his attorney.
Commisso’s claims against the governor were included in state Attorney General Letitia James’ 168-page bombshell report accusing Cuomo of harassing 11 women, including nine current or former state employees.
Cuomo, who has denied all allegations against him, resigned in August, a week after the report was released.
Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple’s office filed the criminal complaint against Cuomo in October, before consulting with the district attorney.
Commisso told The Post she believed the DA’s decision not to move forward would deter women from coming forward.
“I don’t think that it’s teaching anyone anything,” she said. “It’s not showing or proving a good message.”
Her attorney Brian Premo said his client should have gotten her day in court.
“When a victim … has a desire to speak in a courtroom and have a jury make a determination, particularly when it’s a sex-crime allegation and it’s a woman who allegedly was victimized and abused by a very powerful person, then I think a jury should make that determination,” Premo said on Albany’s Talk1300 radio show Wednesday morning.
“She just feels like her voice is not being listened to.”
Legal experts noted that Commisso could still pursue legal action in civil court — something her attorney confirmed she intends to do.
“In this case, my client had no control over the filing or prosecution of criminal charges. She had no authority or voice in those decisions,” Premo told The Post. “The only thing she has any power over is her resolution to continue to speak the truth and seek justice in an appropriate civil action, which she will do in due course.”
