A former deputy mayor of D.C. sexually harassed a second employee, according to an investigation.
The Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel released a summary of findings on Monday morning on former Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio, who was a longtime top aide to Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Allegations of physical sexual advances and unwanted romantic attention were substantiated, the report says. Allegations of retaliatory interactions and retaliatory treatment were unsubstantiated.
Falcicchio has declined to comment on the allegations or investigations.
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Falcicchio made multiple unwanted physical sexual advances toward the woman, who worked for him in the deputy mayor’s office, the report says. He also was found to have sent unwanted flirtatious messages. The report concluded there was no retaliation by Falcicchio or other government staff after the woman turned down his repeated advances over several months in 2020.
Falcicchio abruptly resigned earlier this year. A previous investigation found that he sexually harassed another city employee.
The findings released Monday are similar to findings from the investigation into allegations made by another woman. A third woman has made similar allegations but they are not part of the internal investigation because the woman is not a D.C. government employee or contractor.
The summary of the second investigation, while similar to the first, contains far fewer details than the summary of the first set of findings.
The D.C.Council recently passed legislation directing the District’s inspector general to hire an outside law firm to conduct a review of the investigation, which was conducted internally.
Lawyers for the two D.C. employees issued a statement calling Falcicchio’s actions part of a “disturbing and longstanding pattern of predatory behavior by one of the most powerful men in Washington.”
Vanessa Natale, who led the investigation for the Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel, acknowledged her office has had some talks with the attorneys for the two women.
“We’ve had some informal conversations with the parties, and they’ll be best to decide what’s next, but it could possibly be settlement, but nothing in stone yet,” she said.
“Sometimes settlements are confidential,” she said. “... Usually, this kind of stuff is not public.”
The women’s attorneys released a statement praising the investigations and calling Falcicchio’s actions “a disturbing and longstanding pattern of predatory behavior by one of the most powerful men in Washington. Sexual harassment should never be tolerated under any circumstances, and we urge the District to implement immediate and comprehensive reforms to safeguard others from being treated in this reprehensible manner.”
The Washington City Paper reported a third woman made similar allegations against Falcicchio. Those allegations were not part of the internal investigation because the woman is not a D.C. government employee or contractor. According to an email from the Office of Legal Counsel to the third accuser, obtained by News4 through the Freedom of Information Act, the office strongly urged the woman to file a complaint with D.C.'s inspector general or board of ethics.
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