A rep for Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday counter-sued the state trooper and her attorneys who accused his ex-governor boss of intercourse harassment, claiming they illegally focused him over his function as a spokesman.
The go well with, filed by Richard Azzopardi in Manhattan state Supreme Court docket, stated the girl, solely recognized as “Trooper 1” in her case, and her attorneys on the agency Wigdor LLP engaged in “malicious prosecution” by including him to their lawsuit in opposition to Cuomo.
Azzopardi, who is understood for issuing combative statements on behalf of Cuomo, was named as a defendant of their go well with after he issued a press release slamming the legislation agency’s credibility.
Attorneys for Wigdor have usually dealt with high-profile circumstances, together with that of Cassie Ventura, the ex-girlfriend of Sean “Diddy” Combs who accused him of abuse.
Azzopardi launched one disparaging assertion in regards to the agency Feb. 17, 2022, after Widgor filed a lawsuit in Brooklyn federal court docket on behalf of the trooper, who has claimed Cuomo “violated” her whereas in workplace.
The previous governor denies wrongdoing.
Azzopardi alleged on the time that the legislation agency was “broadly recognized to make use of the press to extort settlements on behalf of ‘nameless claimants’ – that’s Un-American and won’t occur right here. Gov Cuomo will struggle each try at low cost money extortions and is anxious to have the soiled politics cease – we stay up for justice in a court docket of legislation.”
Doug Wigdor then wrote to Azzopardi demanding a retraction and vowing to file a defamation go well with in opposition to Azzopardi and Cuomo and add retaliation claims to the go well with.
Wigdor ended up including a retaliation declare in opposition to Azzopardi and Cuomo however didn’t sue Azzopardi, Azzopardi’s counter-suit stated.
Decide DeArcy Corridor finally dismissed the criticism in opposition to Azzopardi and eliminated it from the case in a ruling July 12.
However Azzopardi, who has since began his personal public-relations agency, misplaced purchasers and enterprise because of the “frivolous” go well with, court docket papers declare.
“Defendants have been profitable in harming Azzopardi. As a direct results of the amended federal criticism, Azzopardi misplaced enterprise and purchasers,” Azzopardi’s attorneys, Neal Brickman and Ethan Leonard, stated within the civil go well with.
“Each present and potential purchasers terminated, or determined to not full, agreed upon contracts with Azzopardi and his just lately opened enterprise citing, as a foundation, the existence of the amended federal criticism.
“That submitting indubitably impaired Azzopardi’s skilled status and brought on Azzopardi to lose materials numbers of as but unidentified further purchasers – precisely as Defendants meant,” they stated.
In an fascinating footnote, Azzopardi’s attorneys stated they reserve the best to amend their criticism and use trooper’s identify if the court docket guidelines to unmask her id.
“That is the most recent try to silence one among Andrew Cuomo’s victims and intrude along with her rights,” stated Widgor lawyer Valdi Licul in a press release about Azzopardi’s go well with.
“As set forth in Trooper 1’s recently-filed criticism, Mr. Cuomo, typically by way of his spokesman Richard Azzopardi, has lobbed threats at anybody who has sought to carry Mr. Cuomo to account for creating what federal and state authorities have repeatedly discovered to be a hostile work surroundings for girls. We won’t be deterred by this newest determined tactic.”
Azzopardi stated the state shouldn’t be bankrolling his lawsuit.
The state paid out greater than $25 million to reimburse Cuomo and different state aides for his or her authorized protection bills in sexual-harassment and different circumstances.
Cuomo resigned in shame in August 2021 after a damning investigative report commissioned by state Lawyer Common Letitia James’ workplace substantiating harassment claims made by a slew of feminine workers in opposition to the ex-governor, together with from Trooper 1.
Cuomo has denied the claims and is mulling a political comeback, together with a possible run for New York Metropolis mayor.
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