NY taxpayers on the hook for $450K as Cuomo sexual harassment accuser settles with the state — just months ahead of mayoral primary
A former state employee who accused Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment clinched a $450,000 settlement — with taxpayers set to foot the massive bill as the former governor makes a comeback bid for New York City mayor.
Charlotte Bennett, who served as an assistant to Cuomo when he was governor, officially ended a long-running lawsuit Friday against the Empire State.
She is slated to receive $100,000 personally with another $350,000 earmarked for her lawyers and legal costs — all of which will be shelled out by the state.
The settlement caps a bruising battle with Cuomo, including a separate federal lawsuit that Bennett later dropped in which her lawyer contended the ex-gov’s attorneys had aggressively sought her gynecological records.
“Ms. Bennett is looking forward to moving on with her life,” Bennett’s attorney Debra Katz said in a statement Friday about the settlement.
The scandal-plagued Cuomo’s various bids to clear his name have been costly for New Yorkers.
As of March, taxpayers had shelled out nearly $60 million in legal costs to defend against various scandals that embroiled the Cuomo administration, according to a report by the state Comptroller’s Office.
The tab to defend Cuomo and the state each against Bennett’s claims ran upward of $9 million – and a total of $14.3 million was approved had she not settled, according to public records.
Bennett, now 29, was the second woman after former gubenatorial aide Lindsey Boylan, to publicly accuse the thrice-elected Democrat of sexual harassment in 2021.
She filed suit against the state in March 2023, alleging it failed to act to address her complaint that Cuomo subjected her to degrading sexual harassment on the job and accused her of lying when she came forward with the accusations.
As part of the settlement, Bennett — who worked as a top assistant and health policy adviser to Cuomo between May 2019 and June 2020 — agreed not to seek further employment in the state Executive Chamber.
The settlement gives Bennett lump sum payouts of $40,000 for post traumatic stress disorder and narcolepsy and $35,000 for emotional distress.
The state did not own up to any wrongdoing, or liability, in the agreement, according to a copy of the settlement obtained by The Post.
“This settlement was mutually agreed upon by the parties and allows the State to minimize further cost to the taxpayers,” Avi Small, a spokesman for Gov. Kathy Hochul, said in a statement.
Katz maintained her client’s allegations were supported by findings from New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office and from the US Department of Justice.
But Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi touted the settlement as vindicating the former governor.
“If anyone ever questioned whether this situation was political from the start, today’s taxpayer funded nuisance settlement is proof positive,” he claimed.
Cuomo in December filed a notice that he would sue Bennett for defamation. That case is still pending but a civil complaint detailing his allegations has yet to be filed.
Bennett initially filed her federal lawsuit in September 2022 against Cuomo, his top lieutenant Melissa DeRosa and two other aides — but dropped that case in December just days before she was set to give a sworn deposition about her claims.
Bennett said at the time that Cuomo, 67, used the “unlimited” taxpayer funds at his disposal for his legal defense to attack her, causing her to feel she would be “better off dead than endure more of this litigation abuse.”
Cuomo’s legal team made evidence requests for Bennett’s medical records, including gynecologists, optometrists and from when she was a minor, Katz asserted at the time.
The former governor’s attorneys contended that Bennett withdrew the lawsuit to avoid having to admit under oath that her accusations were false.
Erica Vladimer, co-founder of the Sexual Harassment Working Group established by former legislative staffers, slammed Cuomo’s successor Hochul for how she handled the case.
“Hochul spent $2.5 million dragging Charlotte Bennett through court proceedings,” Vladimer said, referring to the law firm’s original contract. “Is this any different the way Cuomo would have handled it?
“No amount of money may ever make up for the trauma Charlotte endured, and this unnecessary prolonging of legal proceedings could have easily been avoided.”
Bennett’s accusations against Cuomo remained the same in both the case against the state and her federal suit naming him.
She alleged that Cuomo made inappropriate comments to her and that DeRosa and other staffers tried to sweep the accusations under the rug by transferring her to a lower position.
During one June 5, 2020, meeting in the governor’s office Cuomo allegedly made fun of her wearing a mask during COVID-19, saying that when she breathed it reminded him of the monsters in the movie “Predator,” her suit claimed
She “laughed uncomfortably” — before he prophetically responded: “If I were investigated for sexual harassment, I would have to say I told her she looked like a monster,” the suit alleged.
Bennett also claimed Cuomo asked her invasive questions about her sex life and told her he was “lonely” and willing to date someone over 21, the suit alleged. She was 25 at the time.
Cuomo stepped down in August 2021 amid the sexual harassment scandal and claims that his office hid the true number of nursing home deaths from COVID during the pandemic.
His resignation came two weeks after a report by the attorney general’s office found he had sexually harassed 11 women and created a hostile work environment in his office — a finding which was later backed by the federal prosecutors.
Cuomo has vehemently maintained his innocence and has attempted to return to power with a run for New York City’s mayor. He’s currently the frontrunner in the crowded June 24 Democratic primary.
Other suits filed over the sexual harassment claims include one from a state trooper who accused Cuomo of touching her inappropriately. That legal battle has cost the state $8.6 million so far, according to Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s office.
Another $11.7 million has been spent on state investigations, including into Cuomo’s handling of the COVID pandemic and his notorious $5 million pandemic book deal, as well as to cover the cost of defending him in impeachment proceedings.
Former executive assistant Brittany Commisso, who accused Cuomo of groping her, also has a case against the ex-gov still pending in state court.
Boylan, who accused Cuomo of sexual harassment in December 2020, lauded the fact that Bennett would receive some recompense.
“I am glad the state finally did what Andrew Cuomo will not – accept responsibility for the harm his harassment caused Charlotte. Proud of her courage always,” she said Friday.
— Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy and Hannah Fierick
