Charlotte Bennett filmed herself driving in a car in January 2020, talking about her discussions and relationship with her then-boss.
“We had this deep heart-to-heart. We were sitting there, just the two of us in very casual clothing. It was the most casual person-to-person [talk] I had with the man,” Bennett said.
Bennett, who would go on to sue Cuomo in federal court two years ago, confides in the footage that she had been sexually assaulted in college.
She recalled Cuomo getting emotional, saying he was in “tears.”
Bennett said she initially thought that Cuomo was not “capable as a person” to have such a conversation, and that he would “disappoint” her.
“It was neither of those things. He was so amazing,” she said.
“It was amazing.”
She called him a “wonderful person that I can get along with.”
The footage, first reported by the (Albany) Times Union, surfaced as part of discovery in the case.
But Cuomo’s camp said it was not included in state Attorney General Letitia James’s investigation that concluded he harassed or committed misconduct against a slew of women — including Bennett.
James’ damning report released in August 2021 led to Cuomo resigning as he faced potential impeachment, although he continued to deny any wrondoing.
Cuomo’s legal team said the new footage damage undermines Bennett’s credibility and case.
Bennett spun a “false narrative” about her time in the executive chamber, Cuomo attorney Theresa Trzaskoma said in a Jan. 24 letter to Judge Sarah Cave.
Cuomo’s legal team said the new footage damage undermines Bennett’s credibility and case.
Her claims included that Cuomo made her “uncomfortable,” pressured her into discussing her alleged sex assault experiences and she sought a transfer over the former governor’s advances, the attorney said in the letter.
“These allegations are not true,” Trzaskoma said.
Trzaskoma said it was Bennett who “deliberately” engaged in discussions with Cuomo, not that the ex-governor “subjected” her to “invasive questions” about being a sex assault survivor.
The Cuomo attorney also claimed that Bennett started changing her tune about Cuomo after talking to Lindsey Boylan, another staffer who accused Cuomo of harassment.
A Cuomo spokesperson also argued that the new evidence undermines AG James’ report concluding multiple instances of misconduct and harassment.
“With every passing day it becomes more clear that Tish James’s investigation was a political farce that had more to do with her failed campaign for governor than it did about the truth,” Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said.
The Post reached out to Bennett’s lawyer for comment.