NY Attorney General’s chief of staff resigns following sexual harassment investigation

The chief of staff to New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) has resigned following an investigation into at least two sexual harassment claims made against him. 

The attorney general’s office said in a statement that an “independent, impartial investigation” was conducted, and Khan has since resigned. 

“The Office of Attorney General has protocols in place to thoroughly investigate any allegation of misconduct,” a spokesperson said. “The office takes these matters with the utmost seriousness, and this situation is no different.” 

The New York Times was the first to report the investigation and Khan’s subsequent resignation. 

Khan told The Times in a statement that he was planning to leave by Dec. 31. 

“I’ve been slated to leave the office for the private sector at the end of this year,” Khan said. “This is unrelated to an investigation which, nevertheless, found no official workplace misconduct.” 

A source familiar with the situation told The Hill that those who made the allegations were not current employees at the office at the time the allegations were made and that every incident took place outside the office. 

Two people with knowledge of the matter told The Times that the allegations involved former employees. 

The source told The Hill that James took immediate action to start an investigation after the office found out about the allegations. 

The Times reported that at least one woman accused Khan of inappropriate touching and unwanted kissing, leading James to hire a law firm to investigate the allegations. 

One woman who filed a complaint was told on Friday that her allegation was substantiated, according to The Times. 

Khan served as chief of staff in the attorney general’s office since 2019, according to his LinkedIn profile. He was her campaign manager during her 2018 run for the office and served as chief of staff to James while she was New York City public advocate from 2014 to 2018. 

The Times reported that a political consultant told the New York Attorney General’s Office of the allegations.