1996 court document shows Tara Reade told ex-husband of harassment in Biden’s Senate office

A 1996 court document obtained by the San Luis Obispo Tribune shows that Tara Reade, the former Senate aide who has accused former Vice President Joe Biden of sexual assault, told her ex-husband about “a problem she was having at work regarding sexual harassment in U.S. Senator Joe Biden’s office.” 

The new findings come as the Biden campaign has sought to locate a 1993 complaint of sexual harassment Reade claims she filed at the time.

In March, Reade publicly alleged that Biden had sexually assaulted her. She did not formally report the alleged sexual assault until April of this year, when she filed a police report in Washington, D.C.

Biden has denied the allegations. 

Reade previously alleged that she was made uncomfortable by Biden, saying that the presumptive Democratic nominee touched her shoulders and neck. 

The court declaration does not explicitly corroborate Reade’s allegation of sexual assault. 

Theodore Dronen, Reade’s ex-husband who wrote the court declaration obtained by the Tribune, was contesting a restraining order Reade filed against him days after he filed for divorce.

Dronen and Reade met while they both worked as Senate staffers for different members of the upper chamber. In the filing dated March 25, 1996, Dronen said that Reade told him she “eventually struck a deal with the chief of staff of the Senator’s office and left her position.”

“It was obvious that this event had a very traumatic effect on (Reade), and that she is still sensitive and effected (sic) by it today,” Dronen added. 

The new findings come as Reade has faced scrutiny from supporters of Biden, many of whom have suggested her accusations are politically motivated.

In her first televised interview since Biden publicly denied the allegations, Reade told journalist Megyn Kelly Thursday that she believes Biden should end his campaign.