Appearing on Don Imus’ show on Fox Business today, New York Gov. David Paterson for the first time appeared to deny that he improperly intervened in the domestic violence case of a top aide.
Asked by Imus what happened when he reportedly spoke on the phone with the woman who had accused Paterson aide David Johnson of assaulting her on Halloween last year, Paterson responded in narrow terms (emphasis ours):
“[O]ne of the issues I’ve championed over the last 25 years of my life is domestic violence. There are personal connections I have with that issue. And I would never, nor did I ever, try to persuade anyone not to take the natural course of the law that would protect them.”
The New York Times has reported that state police also contacted the woman, Sherr-una Booker, who ultimately did not pursue the case against Johnson. The paper has also reported that Paterson directed his press secretary Marissa Shorenstein to contact Booker and ask her to describe the incident as non-violent.
The Times reported that Shorenstein did not know “the severity” of the alleged assault, and that she never reached Booker.
Shorenstein announced today she is resigning. “”Due to the circumstances that have led to my unwitting involvement in recent news stories, I can no longer do my job effectively,” she said in a statement.
Watch the video of Paterson today (at the 8:50 mark):
Imus: Did you actually call the woman or did she call you, or, what happened?
Paterson: I don’t think that I want to comment on the facts itself, Don, other than to tell you that probably, one of the issues I’ve championed over the last 25 years of my life is domestic violence. There are personal connections I have with that issue. And I would never, nor did I ever, try to persuade anyone not to take the natural course of the law that would protect them.
