Upstate NY DA drops last of five criminal probes into Cuomo but implores legislature to change sex offense law

A district attorney in upstate New York dropped the last of five criminal probes into former Gov. Andrew Cuomo over allegations of sexual misconduct and implored the state legislature to change the sexual harassment statutes.

Oswego County District Attorney Gregory Oakes released a statement Monday explaining that while there is “not a sufficient legal basis to bring criminal charges” against Cuomo for allegedly touching Virginia Limmiatis inappropriately at a public event, the decision is not a reflection of Limmiatis’ reliability.

“In no way should this decision be interpreted as casting doubt upon the character or credibility of Ms. Limmiatis, or how harmful the acts she experienced were,” said Oakes, who also described Limmiatis as “reliable and reasonable.”

Oswego County District Attorney confirms that the final investigation against former Andrew Cuomo has been dropped.

In a statement the DA “implores” the legislature to change current sexual harassment laws: pic.twitter.com/5JkKojqZ81

— Morgan McKay (@morganfmckay) January 31, 2022

Oakes went on to criticize the sex offense statutes in New York, saying the investigation into Cuomo has shown that they “fail to properly hold offenders accountable and fail to adequately protect victims.”

“If justice is to ever be obtained for the countless victims who are sexually abused and harassed in this state each day, the law must be revised and reformed to reflect the lived experiences of victims. I implore legislative leadership in both the NYS Senate and Assembly to please address this issue, or else victims will continue to be denied the justice that they deserve,” Oakes wrote.- READ MORE