Westchester DA declines to prosecute Cuomo despite "credible" allegations of improper conduct
CBSN
The district attorney's office in Westchester County has determined that two separate allegations of misconduct against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo were "credible," but declined to bring charges. Two women separately accused Cuomo of inappropriate conduct, specifically kissing their cheeks while he was governor.
"Our investigation found credible evidence to conclude that the alleged conduct in both instances described above did occur," Westchester District Attorney Miriam Rocah said in a statement on Tuesday. "However, in both instances, my Office has determined that, although the allegations and witnesses were credible, and the conduct concerning, we cannot pursue criminal charges due to the statutory requirements of the criminal laws of New York."
Rocah's office was responsible for reviewing the two allegations of improper conduct that took place in her district, the New York City suburb where a state trooper and another woman said they were subjected to unwanted physical contact by the former governor.
Ashley White received her earliest combat action badge from the United States Army soon after the first lieutenant arrived in Afghanistan. The silver military award, recognizing soldiers who've been personally engaged by an attacker during conflict, was considered an achievement in and of itself as well as an affirming rite of passage for the newly deployed. White had earned it for using her own body to shield a group of civilian women and children from gunfire that broke out in the midst of her third mission in Kandahar province. All of them survived. She never mentioned the badge to anyone in her battalion.