Could disgraced New York AG be charged with a crime?

Detectives are investigating claims of abuse by four women

NEW YORK — Detailed accusations that New York’s Attorney General Eric Schneiderman abused women were enough to force him to resign — but are they enough to charge him with a crime?

Investigators say they are just beginning to look into the allegations made by four women who told The New Yorker they were slapped, choked and verbally abused by Schneiderman, often during sexual intercourse. They all strongly rejected his explanation that any abuse was the result of consensual, intimate “role-playing.”

One of the women told the magazine that Schneiderman hit her so hard her ear bled, and another said he left a mark on her face that was still visible the next day. At least one said she took a photo of the injury.

Dermot Shea, chief of detectives for the New York Police Department, said investigators would interview the women in detail.

Legal experts say that the most likely charge would be a lower-level assault. And since Schneiderman was accused of choking at least one woman, he could potentially be prosecuted under a law he helped pass in 2010, which made choking a misdemeanor. The statute of limitations is two years to bring charges for such crimes. Strangulation or an assault that causes a serious physical injury has a five-year window to bring charges.

If investigators find evidence that he verbally abused someone, but did not cause visible physical injury, it would be considered harassment, which has a statute of limitations of one year. That could come into play because some of the alleged abuse happened in 2016 and possibly earlier.

Another complication is that the women didn’t go to the police at the time, which is common among victims of domestic violence.