NY AG pledges to release transcripts from Cuomo investigation, including from former governor

Geddes, N.Y. – Attorney General Letitia James said today she plans to release transcripts of depositions taken during a four-month long investigation into former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, including one from Cuomo himself.

James, whose findings led to Cuomo’s resignation last month, said she didn’t know how soon those documents would become public.

She said she had planned to release redacted versions soon after releasing the report, in which 11 women accuse Cuomo of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior.

“There’s some personal information we have to redact,” she said. “We had redacted it, and we were going to share it with the general public.”

That effort was paused, she said, after a request from local district attorneys, who are conducting their own inquiries into allegations of inappropriate behavior involving Cuomo.

“The district attorneys have asked us not to publicly release the transcripts and so we are cooperating with them,” she said. “I will not be releasing it at this time.”

But her intention, she said at the New York State Fair today, was ultimately to make the transcripts public.

When asked, James said she believed the account given by Virginia Limmiatis, a Syracuse-area National Grid employee who was one of the named accusers in the investigation’s findings.

“I can say I believe her story, Virginia’s story, and all the other women,” James said.

Cuomo has denied any intentional wrongdoing. He and his lawyer have criticized James’s investigation and its findings, saying the conclusions omitted evidence that undermined some of the women’s claims. He resigned from office on Aug. 23.

Today at the fair, James deflected questions about whether she plans to run for governor in 2022. She also declined to say she wasn’t considering a run.

“I don’t want to politicize the events of today,” she said, noting that her office is still looking into two issues regarding Cuomo.

One involves the accusation he used state resources to write a memoir about the coronavirus pandemic. The other involves a leak involving the state’s ethics commission, which has voted to ask James to look into the matter.

“So we still have a number of investigations, and I do not want to undermine those investigations by politicizing the process,” she said.

N.Y. Attorney General Tish James poses next to a photo of Gov. Kathy Hochul at the New York State Fair on Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021. James's investigation into sexual harassment allegations against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo led Cuomo to resign in 2021.

N.Y. Attorney General Letitia James poses next to a photo of Gov. Kathy Hochul at the New York State Fair on Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021. James's investigation into sexual harassment allegations against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo led Cuomo to resign in 2021. Katrina Tulloch | ktulloch@syracuse.com

Instead, James said she looked forward to working with Hochul on many issues, including tackling the opioid crisis. “It’s an honor and a privilege to refer to her as madame governor,” James said. “She broke through glass ceilings.”

At the fair, James’s first stop inside the Center of Progress Building included a visit to the new governor’s exhibit. James stood by Hochul’s photo, clapping and cheering at the state’s first female governor.

Throughout the day, James walked through the fair as if it were a field trip mixed with a reunion, all tinged with political campaigning. She took pictures with kids, who she advised to eat more sugar while at the fair. She toured the fair’s vaccine clinic, sitting and talking with nurses and military members who’ve vaccinated hundreds this year. She listened as New York State Police showed her fingerprinting techniques and shared worries about illegal dirt bikes on city streets.

Letitia James at the NY State Fair

Attorney General Letitia James visited the New York State Fair on Sept. 1, 2021. Teri Weaver | tweaver@syracuse.com

She hugged familiar faces, including Van Robinson, the namesake of the Pan-African Village, and Joanne Antonacci, who works at one of the veterans booths and famously greets politicians of all parties during fairtime.

At the butter sculpture, Victoria Muse of Ithaca approached James and told her she was a sexual assault survivor. James hugged her.

“I’m a fan of what she got accomplished,” Muse said. “Whether it’s true or not, I don’t know. But I’d rather see somebody put a foot down than keep passing the buck.”

Letitia James at the NY State Fair

Attorney General Letitia James visited the New York State Fair on Sept. 1, 2021. Teri Weaver | tweaver@syracuse.com

James also sought out opinions from potential voters. “What’s your No. 1 issue?” she asked three strangers, sitting down with them at a picnic table and sussing out that the economy and lost jobs were a worry among the trio.

“I got a Republican vote,” the Democrat said as she left the state police exhibit, after a man came up to her and offered support. (When asked what office that vote might be for, she teasingly criticized the reporter and went onto the next fair exhibit.)

Mike and Kim Zebrowski, of Albany, stopped the attorney general and asked to take a photo with her. Mike said he wanted to thank her. “I feel strongly that a lot of the things she’s doing are in the best interest for the people in the state of New York,” he said. “I wanted to let her know.”

James chose Basilio’s, currently the state fair’s longest-running food stand, as the spot to have a traditional sausage sandwich for lunch. (Hochul made the same decision on Sunday.)

While eating, she learned more about Upstate New York food traditions. Chicken riggies and tomato pie are Utica specialities. Beef on weck is from Buffalo. (James said she did know what a Rochester garbage plate was, and has eaten one.)

Toward the end of her three-hour visit, syracuse.com | The Post-Standard asked James if she learned anything new during her third trip to the fair. She said she didn’t know the fair had a petting zoo, including a giraffe and camels. She also said she was struck by how grateful people were on the fairgrounds.

Then she paused.

“To be honest with you,” she said, “sort of surprised that so many people knew who I was. So, our message is getting out there. Our good work speaks for itself.”

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