Council’s ethics slap on Bx. pol
‘Harassed’ his staffer
A Bronx city councilman was ordered to take sensitivity training after an ethics panel determined Monday that he paid “unwanted attention” to a female staffer.
The council’s Committee on Standards and Ethics voted unanimously to sanction Councilman Andy King (D-Bronx) following a two-hour, closed-door meeting at which he testified.
“After hearing testimony today from Councilman King, the committee deliberated and determined by a preponderance of the evidence that the allegations . . . were substantiated,” said committee Chair Steven Matteo. “Councilman King violated the council’s anti-harassment and discrimination policy.”
King (pictured), who chairs the Committee on Juvenile Justice, denied the charges, but agreed “voluntarily to complete the council’s mandated training,” according to Matteo.
The allegations against King — revealed in detail for the first time last week — include claims he repeatedly asked a female staffer to smile while grasping her hand and requested her phone number so he could invite her to a gala where he wanted to see her “in a beautiful gown.”
King will have to complete ethics training administered by council lawyers within 30 days and sensitivity training 30 days after Matteo approves a program.
In 2015, a former staffer with the council’s Black, Latino and Asian Caucus, which King co-chaired, filed a notice of claim with the Comptroller’s Office in preparation for a $1.25 million lawsuit against the city, charging King had harassed her.
But officials said the suit was never filed.
King, who was first elected in November 2012, represents the 12th Council District, which includes the brough’s Williamsbridge and Co-op City sections.
Disgraced former Councilman Ruben Wills is the last member of the body to be sanctioned by the committee, which stripped him of a committee post and his right to dispense discretionary funds.
Wills is serving a two- to sixyear prison term after being convicted of redirecting about $11,500 in public matching funds from his 2009 campaign to his nonprofit, and using the funds for personal purchases.