Email over harassment claim sparks sharp response

SANTA FE — An influential New Mexico state senator strongly denies allegations that he sexually harassed a staffer with a national nonprofit group that were outlined in an email sent earlier this year by an outgoing legislative branch official to his boss. The email, written by Ian Kleats, former deputy director of the Legislative Education Study Committee, said there were two separate 2015 incidents in which Sen. John Sapien, D-Corrales, allegedly sexually harassed the outside staffer by urging her to meet him alone for drinks after

she asked to discuss committee business. The staffer interpreted the invitations as a sexual overture, the email claimed. Sapien, the vice chairman of the LESC, called the allegations a “fabrication,” and said that he and Kleats had a contentious working relationship. “He definitely has an ax to grind,” Sapien told the Journal. In response, Kleats said he was “disappointed” by Sapien’s comments and insisted his email was not motivated by a personal grudge or political calculations. He also said he did not leak the email. The email, which was obtained by the Journal, also claimed the staffer shared her story during a meeting with Kleats and former LESC Director Frances Maestas, who did not respond to a request for comment. Kleats told the Journal that he and other LESC staffers did not raise the issue with Sapien, largely because the alleged victim did not want the incident to become public. He said he never intended the email to be publicly released, but said he felt compelled — by both his conscience and potential liability concerns for the LESC — to report Sapien’s alleged behavior after leaving his job. Kleats sent the email to current LESC Director Rachel Gudgel in June, several weeks after he left the agency. It was also sent to two other legislative staffers, one of whom was Raúl Burciaga, director of the Legislative Council Service. In addition to the sexual harassment allegations, the email also includes an offer from Kleats to do work for the agency on a contract basis — he wrote that he charges a $60 hourly rate. Sapien, in an interview, questioned why LESC officials, including Kleats, would not have taken action in response to the sexual harassment allegations for more than a year if they were true. He also raised questions about the email being leaked, saying, “I’m aware in this election of my opponent and the Republican Party being willing to take whatever steps necessary to put me in a position to not win my race.” Sapien is a two-term senator who is seeking re-election to his Senate District 9 seat this year. His opponent in the general election is Republican Diego Espinoza of Rio Rancho.