Taxpayers shouldn’t pay for Cuomo’s harassment
Stamford, Conn.: New York State’s payment of $450,000 to settle Brittany Commisso’s sexual harassment lawsuit against Andrew Cuomo should offend every New York taxpayer.
New York Public Officers Law Sec. 17 generally requires the state to defend and indemnify public employees if they are sued for acts that are within the scope of their employment. But, under that same law, intentional acts of wrongdoing do not receive this protection.
Cuomo was accused of repeated acts of sexual harassment including grabbing buttocks and a breast and committing other unwanted and sexually charged physical advances. How can anyone argue that repeated and systemic sexual harassment is within the scope of a governor’s employment duties? To advance such an argument is ludicrous. Yet, that’s exactly what state decision-makers concluded by forking over $450,000 of taxpayer money to Cuomo’s accuser.
This asinine policy of giving financial protection to sexual abusers should be reexamined. There is no justification for taxpayers paying abuse victims for the reprehensible conduct of a governor or other government employee. If Cuomo is so sure of his innocence, let a jury exonerate him. Short of that, he should pay for his lawyers and for damages paid in settlement or pursuant to a jury award.
Protecting sexual predators from financial responsibility is not only wrong under the law, it’s bad public policy. Public employees will likely curb abusive behavior if they know they are personally liable for the consequences. Peter Janoff
Sidestepped
White Plains, N.Y.: In his op-ed (“Zohran Mamdani and education,” July 13), David Bloomfield chastises Mamdani for omissions as to education in the latter’s campaign. The professor sought to fill in the blanks but is ironically guilty of a crucial omission. Neither one has discussed the “special needs” students who are eligible for Gifted and Talented programs or specialized high school substitutes. The education spectrum has two ends, and both require special attention, albeit different kinds. We must hope that whoever is selected to be schools chancellor does not repeat the divisiveness fostered by Richard Carranza, who proudly boasted that the specialized high schools are not owned by any single ethnic group, unabashedly suggesting that Asians somehow committed something untoward other than scoring highest on the SHSAT. Both Mamdani and a so-called expert were clever enough to avoid a simple issue of fairness and not bring up the politically volatile matter. Chris Lee
Not equipped
Bronx: On the first stop on the No. 1 train — Van Cortlandt Park-242 St., a very busy station — the NYC Transportation Authority is making OMNY the new MetroCard. How come our station does not have an OMNY machine? Kevin Quirke
Prime candidates
Schenectady, N.Y.: To Voicer Barbara Giuliano: In answer to your question, I bet many of the masked ICE agents were Jan. 6 creeps who stormed our Capitol in 2021. Diane Sanders Hombach
Repeated mistake
Chatham, N.J.: To Voicer Charles T. Compton: You unintentionally highlighted the reason that the Trump administration is not an improvement on Barack Obama’s. The earlier president admitted to his mistake (the attack on a country that posed no direct threat to us), while our current leader gleefully repeats it. If the “wacko leftist” Democrat’s action was a mistake, then surely an expert on international affairs like President Trump should know better. Instead, he displays his ignorance of history at every turn, as when he praised the president of Liberia’s good English. Indeed, it’s “gooder” than Trump’s. Paul Denk
He was there
Rochelle Park, N.J.: In the joke of a newspaper that is the N.Y. Post — which I only buy for the sports section because the front is like a MAGA rally daily — Miranda Devine defends Trump by saying he stopped befriending Jeffrey Epstein long before Epstein was a known pedophile! How is it possible that Frump has his arm wrapped around the poor victim of these creeps, Virginia Giuffre, in a photo if he had dumped Epstein earlier, as Devine says? The same girl who took down Prince Andrew for being a creep! If Trump had said goodbye to Epstein before knowing he was a sex trafficker of underage girls, how is this photo possible? Instead of the so-called, now-missing client list, why not go after Epstein’s flight log for the Lolita Express? Isn’t it federal law to file passenger flight names with the FAA? Or are the ultra-rich above the law? B. Boyle
Don’t fold now
Brooklyn: Laura Shindell gets it right in her op-ed (“Gov. Hochul’s energy program,” July 20) opposing Hochul’s baffling decision to revisit previously rejected fossil fuel pipelines in New York. These projects already failed to meet legal standards and were rejected under the Clean Water Act and state climate mandates because they could not demonstrate they were safe or necessary. Nothing has changed to alter that. Meanwhile, the climate crisis has only grown more urgent. Hochul must not reopen the door to projects that were rightfully stopped by science, law and public opposition. Every day, New Yorkers organize to protect their water, air and communities, and their victories should not be reversed to appease fossil fuel companies or Trump’s agenda. This is a moment for bold and visionary leadership, not compromise. Rejecting these pipelines again is the only decision in line with New York’s laws and values. Ella Ryan
Minors oversight
Forest Hills: We have baseball in New York that you ignore. There is an Atlantic League with teams in Staten Island (Ferry Hawks) and Long Island (Ducks). We also have one minor league team in Brooklyn (Cyclones), a Mets minor league team that is part of the South Atlantic League. I would appreciate your listing their standings and the box scores of these teams. Lawrence Konstan
Tragic end
Greenville, S.C.: Sad to hear about the death of Malcolm Jamal Warner. While he was vacationing with family in Costa Rica, the 54-year-old actor drowned. With his many and varied Hollywood accomplishments, he was best known for his role as Theo Huxtable in “The Cosby Show.” One of the many lines I remembered Theo saying on that award-winning show was, “Justine! That is a man’s earring.” Bill Cosby told People magazine that his death was “reminding him of the same call he received when his son died.” The actress Phylicia Rashad said, “He brought so much depth, warmth and wisdom to every scene and every conversation.” This esteemed actor will truly be missed by his fans across America. Steven Hawkins
Cruelty unaccounted for
Monroe Township, N.J.: Re “Horse driver in clear” (July 22): This is why animal cruelty continues. Even with video of Ian McKeever whipping the downed horse and not offering water, he is acquitted and walks out of court with a smile on his face while poor Ryder is dead. Where is the justice? The least they could have done was forbid him from working with horses ever again. Lorri Thompson
Precious lives
Brooklyn: My family and I read with great concern about the overcrowded Animal Care Centers closing its doors to new animals. All my life (I’m 72), I’ve heard how “they’re just animals.” “Animals don’t have souls.” Animals are referred to as “it” even though they’re male (he) and female (she) just as people. This mindset has led to cruelty and callous indifference toward living, sentient souls who give their love unconditionally. Now it’s led to the crisis at ACC. A pet is not our play toy, and not disposable after the pandemic or any time we get tired and decide to discard them. Animals are to us as we are to the angels. Being of a lower order negates nothing, and caring for them is a responsibility we can’t afford to ignore, especially in these times. Consider adopting a dog or cat from ACC and giving them a good life. Joy E. Goldberg
Umbrella of oppression
Manhattan: To Voicer Heyward Johnson: Where do you think America got its slaves from, Scandinavia? Slaves were brought here from Africa and the Caribbean and are the ancestors of the American Descendants of Slavery, so Black people here now from Africa and the Caribbean have just as much right to celebrate Juneteenth and fly the red, black and green flag along with the red, white and blue as American-born Blacks. Please take a refresher course on geography and history. Lynne Henderson
