Andrew Cuomo Wins in Court; Judge Rules Ex-NY Governor Won't Have To Pay $5 Million for COVID-19 Book Deal

On Tuesday, a court ruled in favor of former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in his conflict with a now-defunct state ethics committee, which had ordered him to return the $5 million he was paid to write a book praising his leadership during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The now-defunct Joint Commission on Public Ethics, or JCOPE, initially approved Cuomo's book deal in 2020, but revoked it a few months later, claiming he obtained it under pretenses, improperly using state resources in writing the memoir, 'American Crisis: Leadership Lessons From the COVID-19 Pandemic.'

Court Allows Cuomo To Keep $5.1 Million From Book Deal

Cuomo's advisers say he listened to his attorneys' advice and let his staff work on the book on their own time. However, a State Assembly investigation discovered that, while some workers appear to have used vacation or personal time to work on the book project, it was also done within the course of normal work routines.

According to the Assembly investigation, Cuomo used the time of various state employees, as well as his own, to enhance his advantage amid a worldwide pandemic. Judge Denise A. Hartman of the State Supreme Court in Albany stated in her 16-page opinion that JCOPE overstepped its power, robbing Cuomo of his rights in the process.

It wasn't immediately obvious what would happen next. JCOPE, widely regarded as a toothless body that followed the bidding of the politicians who chose its board, is no longer in existence. This summer, a new Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government took its place.

The court left the door open for the new ethics panel to reopen its investigation into Cuomo's book agreement. Hartman pointed out that lawmakers inserted a clause mandating the successor agency to evaluate pending inquires or concerns when they established it earlier this year, according to the New York Times. The book deal controversy, as well as startling discoveries about the ostensibly voluntary activities of senior Cuomo staffers like then-Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa, was part of the political maelstrom that led the three-term governor to resign.

Cuomo's experiences as governor during the initial months of the pandemic were chronicled in the book when his once-celebrated COVID-19 briefings gained him accolades from Democrats and Republicans alike. The then-political governor's reputation began to deteriorate near the end of 2021, following allegations of sexual harassment and a rumored cover-up of data revealing COVID-19 mortality among nursing facility patients.

Ex-NY Gov. Cuomo's Book Deal

According to reports from the state Assembly and state Attorney General Letitia James, Cuomo sexually harassed many women in addition to other alleged crimes. Cuomo resigned as a result of pressure from other Democrats, but prosecutors in numerous counties declined to pursue charges in situations such as the alleged groping of an employee at the Executive Mansion in Albany, as per New York Post.

At the time of the book's release, he was hailed as a national hero - and potential presidential contender - for his calm management of the COVID-19 outbreak and frequent briefings, which many New Yorkers found reassuring. Cuomo's career was eventually derailed after he was accused of improper sexual conduct against many women. He was also held responsible for many of New York's 15,000 COVID-19 fatalities in nursing homes after pressing the institutions to accept COVID-positive patients at the onset of the pandemic.

The former governor was permitted to write his book on the condition that he does not utilize any governmental staff or resources. The inquiry indicated that state resources were exploited, and state personnel was involved in the promotion and publication of the book.

In a memo, Judith Mogul, a former special counsel in the governor's office, stated that no public resources were utilized in creating the book and that any workers aiding the former governor on the book did so on their own time.

Cuomo spokesman Richard Azzopardi said the study provides some justification by showing the governor's office delivered all the panel requested for approval, Daily Mail reported.