NY Attorney General Resigns After Being Accused of Abuse and Sexual Harassment
Four women have stepped forward and accused New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman of sexual harassment and abuse. In the wake of the report, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman resigned.
According to a report by the New Yorker, two of the women spoke on the record in hopes of protecting other women. Schneiderman was controlling and abusive, often subjecting women to nonconsensual physical violence during sex.
One of the women, Michelle Manning Barish, was romantically involved Schneiderman from the summer of 2013 to New Year’s Day in 2015. Manning Barish noted signs of controlling behavior early on, recalling that Schneiderman demanded Manning Barish remove a small tattoo from her wrist as he deemed it inappropriate. Schneiderman’s actions escalated four weeks later when he slapped Manning Barish for seemingly no reason.
“All of a sudden, he just slapped me, open-handed and with great force, across the face, landing the blow directly onto my ear,” Manning Barish says. “It was horrendous. It just came out of nowhere. My ear was ringing. … He then used his body weight to hold me down, and he began to choke me.”
What makes this case truly appalling is that Schneiderman is a real-life Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Schneiderman was open about his support of the #MeToo movement, even filing suit against Harvey Weinstein and his company.
“His hypocrisy is epic,” Manning Barish said. “You cannot be a champion of women when you are hitting them and choking them in bed, and saying to them, ‘You’re a f–ing whore.’ ”
Just hours after the New Yorker published its post, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for the resignation of Schneiderman.
“No one is above the law, including New York’s top legal officer,” Cuomo said in a statement. “I will be asking an appropriate New York District Attorney to commence an immediate investigation, and proceed as the facts merit.”
“My personal opinion is that, given the damning pattern of facts and corroboration laid out in the article, I do not believe it is possible for Eric Schneiderman to continue to serve as Attorney General, and for the good of the office, he should resign,” Cuomo added.
Despite contesting the allegations, Schneiderman announced that he will be resigning.
“It’s been my great honor and privilege to serve as Attorney General for the people of the State of New York. In the last several hours, serious allegations, which I strongly contest, have been made against me,” Schneiderman said in a statement.
“While these allegations are unrelated to my professional conduct or the operations of the office, they will effectively prevent me from leading the office’s work at this critical time. I therefore resign my office, effective at the close of business on May 8, 2018.”
