One of Governor Andrew Cuomo's accusers claims he 'made her memorize the words to the song Danny Boy' and wanted her to sing i...
One of Governor Andrew Cuomo's accusers claims he 'made her memorize the words to the song Danny Boy' and wanted her to sing it to top aides in a bizarre 'hazing' incident.
The lawyer for Charlotte Bennett, who was Cuomo's second accuser, came forward with the new allegation to WLNY. In February, Bennett had alleged that Cuomo asked her about her sex life and complained to her about being lonely.
Debra Katz, Bennett's lawyer, told the outlet that Cuomo asked Bennett, 25, to learn the lyrics and asked her to sing it for his senior staff including Melissa DeRosa - who told the governor he was hazing his young policy advisor for health.
The lawyer for Charlotte Bennett, who was Cuomo's second accuser, came forward with the new allegation
Gov. Andrew Cuomo accuser claims he 'made her memorize the words to the song Danny Boy' and wanted her to sing it to top aides in bizarre 'hazing' incident
Stephanie Benton, director of the governor's offices, was also allegedly witnessed the bizarre request, Bloomberg reported.
'It's a bizarre request, but he says, 'I want you to memorize these lyrics',' Katz told WLNY.
'She says, 'I don't want to sing 'Danny Boy.' He says, 'Sing 'Danny Boy,' Katz said.
DeRosa, 38, stepped in and said: 'You're hazing her,' Katz told the outlet.
'The governor then starts booming the song 'Danny Boy' and he's singing himself and saying, 'Sing with me',' Katz said.
DeRosa, the Secretary to the Governor and a member of his inner circle, has repeatedly come to Cuomo's defense, as noted by Bloomberg.
'We've seen more women rise to the highest levels,' she said on March 3, after Cuomo's first three accusers came forward. 'I don't think that this diminishes any of that.'
DeRosa is also named in accounts by at least one other of his accusers, according to the outlet. However, she has continued to defend her boss amid an investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
'I would just ask that everyone refrain from judgment until the attorney general is allowed to do her work,' DeRosa said.
Charlotte Bennett, 25, accused Cuomo of propositioning her in his office in June
Lindsey Boylan, a former Cuomo aide, came out in December with allegations against him – she further detailed her experience in a February post to Medium
Alyssa McGrath said Cuomo ogled her body, called her and her co-worker 'mingle mamas' and asked about her lack of a wedding ring as well calling her beautiful in Italian
Karen Hinton (left), a press aide, and Jessica Bakeman accused Cuomo of inappropriate actions
James has made significant strides in her investigation into Cuomo's alleged sexual harassment, WLNY reported. Katz said James has already contacted 12 witnesses provided by Bennett.
Cuomo's first accuser, 36-year-old Lindsey Boylan, also named DeRosa in a February 24 blog post in which she accused Cuomo of kissing her and asking her to play strip poker.
'It was all so normalized — particularly by Melissa DeRosa and other top women around him — that only now do I realize how insidious his abuse was,' Boylan wrote.
Since Boylan and Bennett made their allegations, at least six other women have made claims of innapropriate behavior by Cuomo.
Anna Ruch, the third accuser, came forward in early March and claimed Cuomo put his hands on her bare back and asked her if he could kiss her during a wedding reception in September 2019.
Fourth accuser, Ana Liss, served as a policy and operations aide to Cuomo from 2013 to 2015. She claimed that Cuomo called her 'sweetheart' and kissed her on the hand.
The same day that Liss came forward as an alleged victim, Karen Hinton - a former press aide for Cuomo - claimed he was physically 'aroused' when he allegedly hugged her more than two decades ago, becoming his fifth accuser.
The seventh accuser, Jessica Bakeman formerly worked for Politico New York and claimed Cuomo took her hand and did not let go after shaking it, and in another incident put his arm around her shoulder while telling stories to her colleagues.
Eighth accuser Alyssa McGrath, 33, said Cuomo ogled her body, called her and her co-worker 'mingle mamas' and asked about her lack of a wedding ring.
The governor has said he 'never touched anyone inappropriately' and 'never made any inappropriate advances' but has apologized for making anyone feel 'uncomfortable.'
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