D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s administration confirmed Thursday that it had reached a settlement in the sexual harassment scandal involving Bowser’s former chief of staff, John Falcicchio.
Two city employees had accused Falcicchio of sexual misconduct.
In a statement to WTOP, the Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel said that it “settled the two administrative complaints,” but it could not disclose terms of the settlements due to “confidentiality provisions.”
The settlements were first reported by NBC Washington.
Attorneys representing the two women released a statement saying they also could not discuss details involving the settlement.
“We want to again praise the courage of our two clients who came forward to expose both Falcicchio’s sexual harassment and the significant flaws in the D.C. government’s sexual harassment policy that allowed his behavior to go unchecked for too long,” lawyers Debra Katz and Kayla Morin said in the statement.
In addition to being the mayor’s chief of staff, Falcicchio had also been serving as the city’s deputy mayor for planning and economic development.
Falcicchio resigned from those roles last year when the allegations first came to light.
Bowser said in public remarks last year that she was “completely devastated” following the release of a report by the Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel that detailed specific allegations against Falcicchio.
She also thanked the women for their “bravery in coming forward and being candid.”
According to the report, investigators discovered Falcicchio had made physical and sexual advances toward one employee while she was in his apartment.
It included “unwelcome touching of a sexual nature” in both instances, and Falcicchio “exposing his sexual organs,” according to the report.
Falcicchio was found to have sent thousands of messages to the employee on Snapchat, instant messaging applications and to her personal cellphone.
Vanessa Natale, deputy director of the Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel, said the allegations, while disturbing, did not appear to cross the line into criminal behavior.
“Sometimes unwanted touching and sexual harassment and behaviors associated with it are a crime,” Natale said. “In this matter, with these specific allegations, we do not find that.”
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