Eric Schneiderman Won't Face Charges After Abuse Allegations

NEW YORK — Former New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman will not face criminal charges stemming from his alleged abuse of four women, the prosecutor investigating him said Thursday.

Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas spent about six months probing Schneiderman, who abruptly resigned in May after The New Yorker published accusations of physical and psychological abuse against him.

Singas said she has closed the probe without criminal charges after interviews with the women who cooperated, as well as members of Schneiderman's security detail and employees of the AGs office. She indicated some of the conduct took place too long ago to bring charges.

"I believe the women who shared their experiences with our investigation team, however legal impediments, including statutes of limitations, preclude criminal prosecution," Singas, a Democrat, said in a statement.

The probe found no misconduct by Schneiderman's staff in the AG's office, Singas added.

The allegations against Scheniderman — once considered a Democratic rising star and feminist champion — and his subsequent departure from office rocked New York politics and paved the way for Letitia James to become the state's first black attorney general, and the first woman elected to the post.

A day after Schneiderman resigned, Gov. Andrew Cuomo tapped Singas to investigate the former AG's alleged misconduct, some of which was said to have taken place in his Upper West Side apartment and in the Hamptons on Long Island.

Schneiderman reportedly released a statement Thursday morning saying he had spent time in a rehab facility. He apologized for "any and all pain that I have caused" and to the people of New York "for disappointing them after they put their trust in me."

"I recognize that District Attorney Singas’ decision not to prosecute does not mean I have done nothing wrong," he told the paper. "I accept full responsibility for my conduct in my relationships with my accusers, and for the impact it had on them."

Schneiderman was accused of hitting and choking women during sexual encounters without their consent. Singas's office said a hole in state law doesn't make it a crime to slap, shove or kick someone without causing physical injury. She has proposed legislation to criminalize such conduct when it's done for "the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification."

(Lead image: Eric Schneiderman speaks at a press conference in April 2018. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)