Zippyjuan
11-26-2017, 03:19 PM
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/conyers-steps-ranking-member-judiciary-committee-amid-sexual/story?id=51392841
Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., who faces allegations of sexual harassment, said he is stepping aside as ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee while an ethics investigation is pending.
Conyers, the longest-serving current member in the House of Representatives, continues to deny the allegations and said in a statement, "I very much look forward to vindicating myself and my family before the House Committee on Ethics."
The House Ethics Committee announced last week that it had launched an investigation into the allegations of sexual harassment and age discrimination against Conyers involving his staff. The Michigan representative has said he would fully cooperate.
BuzzFeed News reported Monday that Conyers' office paid a female aide over $27,000 to settle a wrongful dismissal complaint. ABC News has also obtained court filings referencing a federal complaint filed by Conyers’ longtime scheduler, who alleged "sexual advances in the form of inappropriate comments and touches.” The case was later dropped after the judge denied her request to keep the complaint sealed to protect her privacy.
Melanie Sloan, a lawyer who worked with Conyers on the House Judiciary Committee, has also stepped forward to accuse Conyers of being “increasingly abusive” to her, behavior she says wasn’t “sexual harassment” but “sexual discrimination.”
Conyers has acknowledged that his office settled a harassment complaint involving a former staffer but denies the allegations against him.
Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., who faces allegations of sexual harassment, said he is stepping aside as ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee while an ethics investigation is pending.
Conyers, the longest-serving current member in the House of Representatives, continues to deny the allegations and said in a statement, "I very much look forward to vindicating myself and my family before the House Committee on Ethics."
The House Ethics Committee announced last week that it had launched an investigation into the allegations of sexual harassment and age discrimination against Conyers involving his staff. The Michigan representative has said he would fully cooperate.
BuzzFeed News reported Monday that Conyers' office paid a female aide over $27,000 to settle a wrongful dismissal complaint. ABC News has also obtained court filings referencing a federal complaint filed by Conyers’ longtime scheduler, who alleged "sexual advances in the form of inappropriate comments and touches.” The case was later dropped after the judge denied her request to keep the complaint sealed to protect her privacy.
Melanie Sloan, a lawyer who worked with Conyers on the House Judiciary Committee, has also stepped forward to accuse Conyers of being “increasingly abusive” to her, behavior she says wasn’t “sexual harassment” but “sexual discrimination.”
Conyers has acknowledged that his office settled a harassment complaint involving a former staffer but denies the allegations against him.