Andrew Cuomo lawyer accuses Albany County sheriff of leaking grand jury information

ALBANY — An attorney for Andrew M. Cuomo on Monday accused Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple of leaking grand jury information about the sexual harassment investigation of the former governor.

Rita Glavin, who has represented Cuomo during various probes, said in a letter to state Attorney General Letitia James that Apple told the New York Post in August that subpoenas had been issued regarding a complaint filed by a former aide who accused the former governor of groping her.

Glavin said given the stage of the investigation in August, the only type of subpoenas that could have been issued at that point were from a grand jury.

Glavin, who did not provide direct evidence for her assertion, said Apple violated state laws guaranteeing grand jury secrecy.

Glavin asked James to appoint an independent investigator because, among other reasons, Apple once had described James as "awesome."

Neither James’ office nor Apple’s commented immediately Monday.

Apple’s office recently filed a misdemeanor complaint against Cuomo, accusing him of "forcibly touching," a former aide last year at the Executive Mansion.

Last Friday, Albany County District Attorney David Soares asked a judge to delay a hearing date in the case because the criminal complaint was potentially defective.

Originally set for Nov. 17, the court date is Jan. 7.

Soares said he was not consulted about the filing of the sheriff's complaint.

The allegation against Cuomo, made by former aide Brittany Commisso, was contained in an Aug. 3 report by James which concluded Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women and broke multiple laws in doing so.

Cuomo denied sexually harassing anyone but resigned effective Aug. 24 as he faced a fast-moving impeachment process in the State Legislature.