An internal investigation found John Falcicchio, one of the mayor’s closest advisers for years, more likely than not sexually harassed a female employee.

“I’ve been completely devastated by these allegations since they were made,” Bowser said. “John’s behavior was wrong. Period.”

Eight of the 13 members of the D.C. Council have raised questions about the investigation done by the Mayor’s Office of Legal Counsel and whether an independent investigation should be conducted after only two of eight allegations were substantiated and the case was not referred for criminal investigation.

“I don’t know what you can’t trust about a report that substantiates sexual harassment against a deputy mayor,” said Vanessa Natale, who oversaw the investigation and was firm in her defense of it.

“I’m not exaggerating when I say hundreds of hours of thinking, talking, writing,” she said. “That’s what you can trust. I stand behind the report and our findings 100%.” 

According to a summary of the investigation made public over the holiday weekend, one of the substantiated allegations was unwelcome touching of a sexual nature on two occasions, including exposing his sexual organs.

The report also said Falcicchio sent the woman thousands of inappropriate messages over the course of less than six months. The report said sexually charged Snapchat messages, including demands for sex and graphic video, were unwanted.

“There are some things that are confidential that I cannot say, but I want you to know that, yes, sometimes unwanted touching and sexual harassment and behaviors associated with it are a crime,” Natale said. “In this case, in this matter, with these specific allegations, we do not find that, and I did not refer or call on MPD to make an investigation.”

Bowser said she hopes by releasing the report, more employees will be encouraged to speak up if they are mistreated.

“Whether sexual harassment or EEO (equal employment opportunity) or any complaint, we want you to come forward, and I want to send a clear message that your allegations will be taken seriously,” she said.

There is still an ongoing investigation into allegations from a second female employee. When that’s complete, Bowser said she’d like to see the D.C. inspector general look into the allegations and if there are any institutional problems in how agencies are run.

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The report was released late Saturday. Bowser took full responsibility for the timing of the release, explaining she got the report Friday and wanted attorneys on both sides to have the full report as soon as possible and for the public to have a detailed summary as soon as possible.

The attorneys for the woman at the center of this report say she was blindsided by the release. They say they were given no advanced notice it was going to the public and there’s information in the public report that could identify their client, who they say is still employed by D.C. government.

News4 has reached out to the mayor’s office and the mayor’s legal counsel for reaction.

The mayor did not have to release any of the report, as this type of internal investigation is not public record.

The D.C. Council will possibly seek an independent investigation by an outside law firm, and there is the likelihood of a civil lawsuit or settlement between the employee and the city.

Helen Molteni, of Arlington, Virginia, said she was on the platform at the Foggy Bottom station when a man came up to her and started harassing her.

“The situation kept escalating. He kept yelling at me. He moved closer,” Molteni said a video on TikTok about the experience.

Molteni’s video has since gone viral and garnered an avalanche of responses.

”The words that he was saying, they were sexual expletives. They were comments saying that he wanted to do sexual things to me, and I felt very unsafe,” Molteni said in an interview with News4 on Thursday.

Molteni said she called for help, but no one — including police and Metro employees — at the station came to her aid.

The man continued harassing her for about 10 minutes until her train showed up, she said.

Then, she said the incident was made worse when a bystander was rude to her.

“After I got on the train, one man who had witnessed the whole altercation and was one of the bystanders
said, ‘Well, you know, you are just as bad as him because now you are making us feel unsafe.’ So I was just feeling very scared.”

Metro’s new General Manager Randy Clarke says he personally went back and watched security camera video of the harassment.

”That type of behavior that she described is completely unacceptable – not just in Metro, but society,” Clarke said. “We should all agree and call out despicable behavior when we see it.”

Molteni said it’s not clear if any charges will be filed because there was no physical altercation.

She said the one thing she wants to come out of the situation is for people who witness similar incidents of harassment to step in and help.

“One thing I’ve learned in this situation is that it’s been happening to so many women in D.C. and in other major cities so I just want to let them know that they’re not alone, and that I, as a potential bystander in the future, will do everything that I can if I see something, and I hope that they can do the same for me if I experience this again,” Molteni said.

News4 has posted a guide with tips on how to safely intervene in situations of public harassment.

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Witnessing harassment in public can be frightening, and many people might not know how to respond.

The harassment prevention group Right To Be has worked for 17 years to help turn potential bystanders into people who can safely diffuse such situations.

“When we put our best efforts forward and confront it head-on, street harassment is no match for us!” Right To Be said in a tweet promoting one of its bystander training sessions.

The nonprofit group refers to a “safe and simple set of tactics” of bystander intervention, which Right To Be calls the 5Ds: Distract, Delegate, Direct, Delay, Document.

Here is how the group recommends using those tactics. Also, remember that you can always call 911 if you fear for your safety or the safety of another person.

The 5Ds of Bystander Intervention:

Distract

Distractions can be a more subtle way to intervene when facing cases of harassment, as the goal is to simply interrupt the situation. 

According to Right To Be, there are two key factors when using this tactic:

1. Engage solely with the victim of the harassment. Ignore the one doing the harassing.
2. Direct the conversation to a completely unrelated topic without acknowledging the harassment taking place.

A Twitter user said they used this method from the group’s bystander intervention guide while on a train.

“A man was yelling at a woman I didn’t know & I waved to her & said “Hey! I haven’t seen you in so long! Come sit next to me!” The guy calmed down and left us alone,” the user tweeted.

Delegate

Delegation is a tactic where a third party is asked to help intervene with the harassment. 

According to the Right To Be’s guide, the two key factors for this method are:

1. Look for someone who is both ready and willing to help. Usually, the person next to you is a good option.
2. After choosing a third party to help you, try to explain the situation as clearly as possible and how you would like them to help.

Document

This method involves the documentation of the harassment, whether it’s recording or taking notes. While documenting harassment can be helpful, the group mentions the importance of doing it safely and responsibly.

1. Assess the harassment situation before documenting it. If nobody is helping the person being harassed, choose another option of the 5Ds, as documentation could further traumatize the victim. If the person is already receiving help, you should assess your own safety and, if safe, may begin documenting.
2. Always ask the person who was harassed what they want to do with your documentation. Never post it online without their permission.

To further explain the proper ways to document harassment, Right To Be linked the video Tips on Filming Hate on their 5Ds guide as a teaching example.

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Delay

If intervening in the moment is not possible, consoling someone who was harassed after the fact can still be very helpful. According to Right To Be, although most harassment happens quickly or in passing, speaking to the affected individual about what happened can reduce that person’s trauma.

Different ways to delay include:

• asking how the person is doing and letting them know what happened to them was wrong
• offering to sit with or accompany them 
• asking if there is any way you can support or help them

Direct

This method involves speaking to the person doing the harassment directly and is noted by the group’s guide to be used with caution to prevent the abuse from being shifted towards yourself. 

According to Right To Be, there are two important keys to using this method:

1. First, assess the situation before you decide how to respond by asking yourself some of the following questions: Are you physically safe? Is the person being harassed physically safe? Does it seem unlikely the situation will escalate? Can you tell if the person being harassed wants someone to speak up?
2. Keep the interaction short and swift. Try to avoid any antagonizing behaviors that may escalate the situation with the person doing the harassing. 

Some of the guide’s examples of what you can say include:

• “That’s inappropriate.”
• “Leave them alone.”
• “Please stop right now.”
• “They’ve asked you to leave them alone and I’m here to support them.”

How Can You Intervene and Stay Safe?

Educating yourself on how to safely intervene in harassment situations can benefit you as an individual in more ways than just helping others.

Right To Be has partnered with other organizations with similar campaigns for bystander training, such as the Green Dot program that trains young people to intervene when witnessing attitudes or behaviors that could put people at risk for violence, according to CDC-funded research.

The CDC said its research has shown that bystander training motivates and teaches young people “to speak out against attitudes or behaviors that support violence, provide help when they see behavior that puts others at risk, and take steps to safely and effectively intervene when possible.” Programs such as Green Dot also reduce the likelihood that young people in high school will commit sexual violence or be victims, according to a recent CDC-funded study on testing bystander effectiveness to reduce violence.

LONDON — Lloyd’s of London, the U.K. insurance giant, has hit one of its member firms with a record £1.05 million ($1.38 million) fine for misconduct, which included allowing an annual inappropriate “boys’ night out” for a number of years.

Lloyd’s said in a notice of censure, published Wednesday, that its syndicate member firm Atrium Underwriters had accepted three charges of “detrimental conduct.”

One of the charges was for “sanctioning and tolerating over a period of a number of years up until 2018 an annual ‘Boys’ Night Out’ during which some male members of staff, (including two senior executives in leadership roles) engaged in unprofessional and inappropriate conduct.”

This included “initiation games, heavy drinking and making inappropriate and sexualised comments about female colleagues.”

‘No adequate steps were taken’

Lloyd’s also charged Atrium because it failed to notify the insurer about the facts relating to the misconduct of one of its members of staff, referred to in the document as “Employee A.”

In addition, the notice stated that Employee A’s conduct was well known with Atrium, “but no adequate steps were taken to deal with it.”

“Employee A’s behaviour included a systematic campaign of bullying against a junior employee over a number of years,” Lloyd’s said, adding that Atrium failed to protect the junior member of staff once it became aware of the bullying.

Lloyd’s said that Atrium failed to acknowledge or challenge Employee A’s behavior, “motivated in part by the desire of senior managers to protect Atrium from bad publicity.”

The employee who complained about Employee A was also instructed not to speak about Atrium’s investigation into the misconduct or the allegations made.

The notice said that because Atrium had settled these proceedings at the “earliest opportunity,” Lloyd’s Enforcement Board accepted a 30% discount on the fine, which otherwise would have been £1.5 million. Even so, Lloyd’s said in a separate statement that this was still the largest ever fine imposed in its 336-year history.

In addition to the fine, Atrium agreed to pay Lloyd’s £562,713.50 in costs.

Lloyd’s CEO John Neal said the firm was “deeply disappointed by the behaviour highlighted by this case, and I want to be clear that discrimination, harassment and bullying have no place at Lloyd’s.”

He said that all Lloyd’s employees should “expect to work in a culture where they feel safe, valued, and respected.”

An independent survey of workers within the “Lloyd’s market,” published in September 2019, found that 8% had witnessed sexual harassment during that past year, but just 45% said they felt comfortable raising their concerns.

The survey was commissioned by Lloyd’s on the back of reports of sexual harassment within the business. It also found that 22% of respondents had seen people in their organization turn a blind eye to inappropriate behavior.

“The message sent by Harvard’s actions alleged in the complaint is clear: students should shut up. It is the price to pay for a degree,” Russell Kornblith of Sanford Heisler Sharp, the women’s law firm, said in a statement.

The suit filed in U.S. District Court in Boston alleges that one of the students, Lilia Kilburn, was subjected to repeated forcible kissing and groping as early as 2017 by anthropology and African and African American studies professor John Comaroff.

On another occasion in 2017, when she met with Comaroff to discuss her plans to study in an African country, he repeatedly said she could be subjected to violence in Africa because she was in a same-sex relationship, the lawsuit said.

“Ms. Kilburn sat frozen in shock, while professor Comaroff continued for approximately five minutes,” the suit said.

Comaroff, who is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, said in a statement from his lawyers that he “categorically denies ever harassing or retaliating against any student.”

“Regarding Ms. Kilburn, professor Comaroff did not kiss her or touch her inappropriately at any time,” the statement said.

As for the discussion about the dangers of possible violence she would face in Africa if traveling with a same-sex partner, the statement said he was giving her appropriate advice motivated by concern for her safety.

The other two plaintiffs, Margaret Czerwienski and Amulya Mandava, said when they reported Comaroff’s behavior to university administrators, he retaliated against them by threatening to derail their careers.

Comaroff denied ever threatening Czerwienski or Mandava, but instead “consistently made every effort to assist these students and to advance their careers.”

The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault or harassment unless they choose to come forward publicly, as the three women have done.

All three plaintiffs lodged complaints with Harvard’s Office for Dispute Resolution in July 2020 alleging that the school was in violation of Title IX, the federal law that bars gender discrimination in education.

“Harvard’s continued failure to act on repeated reports of harassment against professor Comaroff —until spurred to do so by the media — demonstrates an institutional policy of indifference: a system designed to protect the university, its reputation, and the faculty who sustain that reputation at the expense of its students,” the lawsuit said.

A Harvard spokesperson in an email declined to comment on the lawsuit, but provided a copy of a letter from Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Claudine Gay saying Comaroff was put on administrative leave last month for the remainder of the spring semester after university investigators found that he engaged in verbal conduct that violated both the school’s sexual and gender-based and professional conduct policies.

The lawsuit seeks a jury trial, unspecified damages, and a judgment that Harvard violated the women’s rights.

Microsoft’s board said Thursday it will review the software maker’s policies on sexual harassment and issue a report in the spring after shareholders in November approved a proposal for action.

The assessment will arrive after years of complaints about Microsoft’s investigations of concerns that employees have raised.

The law firm Arent Fox will handle the review. The board said Arent Fox, with offices in Washington and other U.S. cities, has not “done a significant amount of work for the company in the past.” Last year, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee hired Arent Fox to review claims of abuse at national team rowing programs. The U.S. men’s coach, Mike Teti, ended up resigning in October.

The review will compare Microsoft’s handling of harassment with that of other companies, which goes further than what was requested in the Arjuna Capital-led shareholder proposal. Arjuna held $17.5 million in Microsoft stock, its second-largest position, at the end of the third quarter.

Arent Fox will submit a report to the board with recommendations, and executives said they will follow with a plan of action to show the board based on the recommendations. The board then plans to release a public report on proposed changes to company culture, if necessary.

“Our culture remains our number one priority and the entire board appreciates the critical importance of a safe and inclusive environment for all Microsoft employees,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement.

“We’re committed not just to reviewing the report but learning from the assessment so we can continue to improve the experiences of our employees. I embrace this comprehensive review as an opportunity to continue to get better.”

Nadella confronted the subject last May, following reports that Bill Gates, Microsoft’s co-founder and original CEO, had pursued a sexual relationship with an employee in 2000.

Microsoft received a report on the matter, and a board committee looked into it. Gates left Microsoft’s board in 2020.

For his part, Nadella said anyone can bring up an issue, even if it’s two decades old, and the company will take action. The Microsoft board said Thursday that its report will summarize the results of investigations, including the one involving Gates.

The board report will also consider allegations of harassment and discrimination that female employees made in a 2019 email chain and the company’s response. In addition to the Gates case and the emails, the shareholder proposal alluded to a 2012 class-action lawsuit against Microsoft in which 238 employees alleged sexual harassment.

And in a lawsuit dropped in 2020, former Microsoft employee Katie Moussouris alleged that Microsoft had developed a habit of sex discrimination against women in technical and engineering positions. She said in her original 2015 complaint that in 2008 she had complained about a male director who was harassing other female employees.

Microsoft found that to be true but moved him to a different part of the organization and allowed him to keep his title. Moussouris said she complained after the director retaliated against her by giving her a low bonus; he later received a promotion, she claimed.

That lawsuit was dropped after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed a lower court’s ruling denying that it could proceed as a class-action case.

Workers at other large technology companies Apple and Google have brought attention to the way their employers have dealt with harassment allegations. In 2020, Google settled a lawsuit with shareholders over allegations that they mishandled misconduct among executives, and the company announced a slate of new practices.

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