Washington Post pushes back on Justin Fairfax denial of sexual-assault claim, publishes graphic details
Graphic new details are emerging about a newly revealed allegation of sexual assault against Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, as The Washington Post pushes back against Fairfax’s claim that the newspaper found serious problems with the original accusation when it initially opted not to publish the account.
“The Post did not find ‘significant red flags and inconsistencies within the allegations,’ as the Fairfax statement incorrectly said,” the Washington Post said in a story published Monday, sharply disputing the lieutenant governor's statement.
VIRGINIA LT. GOV. JUSTIN FAIRFAX DENIES SEXUAL ASSAULT CLAIM, AMID POLITICAL STORM
The allegation against Fairfax, a Democrat, first surfaced on the website Big League Politics, the same right-wing political blog that published the now-infamous yearbook photo showing someone in blackface and someone in a KKK costume on Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's 1984 yearbook page. Fairfax has vehemently denied the accusation.
In a pre-dawn denial on Monday, Fairfax tweeted a statement saying he “has never assaulted anyone—ever—in any way, shape, or form.”
Fairfax said that the accuser, a woman, “first approached the Washington Post” over a year ago, prior to Fairfax’s inauguration in 2018.
“The Post carefully investigated the claim for several months,” Fairfax’s office said in the statement. “After being presented with facts consistent with the Lt. Governor’s denial of the allegation, the absence of any evidence corroborating the allegation, and significant red flags and inconsistencies within the allegation, the Post made the considered decision not to publish the story.”
In its Monday story, the Washington Post acknowledged investigating the claims and deciding not to publish. But it said the Fairfax statement “incorrectly” claimed the paper found “significant red flags and inconsistencies within the allegations.”
“Fairfax and the woman told different versions of what happened in the hotel room with no one else present,” the paper said. “The Washington Post could not find anyone who could corroborate either version.”
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The Washington Post didn’t name the accuser. But the paper said Fairfax and the woman met first met in Boston at the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/washpost-pushes-back-against-justin-fairfax-statement-on-sexual-assault-allegation