Former spokesman who accused Lujan Grisham of abuse breaks silence

Oct. 28—Statement from Gov. Lujan Grisham's reelection campaign

"First, the existence and essential terms of the settlement with Mr. Hallinan are disclosed. As previously stated, the Governor settled out of court so she could focus on COVID during the worst of the pandemic rather than spend hundreds of thousands of dollars defending herself against a false accusation.

As part of that settlement, Mr Hallinan agreed to the following statement:

'New Mexicans for Michelle, Inc., the 2018 campaign organization for Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Dominic Gabello and James Hallinan have reached an agreement settling numerous dubious and disputed potential claims made by Mr. Hallinan arising from his employment in 2018 with the campaign organization and his subsequent search for employment. The settlement agreement fully resolves the disputed potential claims. Governor Lujan Grisham, the campaign organization and Mr. Gabello strenuously deny that there is any merit or truth to Mr. Hallinan's claims including his claims about difficulty finding or keeping work after the campaign. They reached a settlement in order to avoid the continuing distraction and significant expense of possible litigation and allow them to concentrate on working for the people of New Mexico during this pandemic.'

The Governor and the campaign stand by the statement — agreed to by Mr. Hallinan — and deny that there is any merit or truth to his allegations."

James Hallinan caused an uproar three years ago when he went public with accusations Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham groped him in 2018 during her first campaign for governor.

Hallinan, however, has kept his lips sealed since he signed a nondisclosure agreement as part of a $150,000 settlement with the governor, who has denied grabbing his crotch.

But Hallinan has been thrust into the center of the governor's race this year over the salacious allegations, which have been used in attack ads against the incumbent Democrat as she seeks reelection, and now he is breaking his silence.

"I'm tired," he said Thursday. "I'm tired of the continued death threats on social media and everybody trying to muscle me. I'm real tired of it. They've pushed me too far."

In a series of interviews with The New Mexican, Hallinan revealed never-before-reported details about the alleged incident, including that he called three high-ranking Democrats — Lt. Gov. Howie Morales, Attorney General Hector Balderas and State Auditor Brian Colón — immediately afterward to tell them what he experienced.

"I didn't disclose the full details," said Hallinan, who was working as Lujan Grisham's campaign communications director at the time. "I disclosed a decent amount of what happened, but I did not disclose enough to put any of them in a situation where they would have any responsibility."

Morales and Colón did not return messages seeking comment. Balderas neither confirmed nor denied Hallinan's claim.

"The parties to the suit, and their attorneys, are the appropriate individuals to weigh in on this matter," Jerri Mares, a spokeswoman for the Office of the Attorney General, wrote in a statement.

Hallinan, 40, used to work as a spokesman for Balderas, as well as for former First Judicial District Attorney Marco Serna. He has also served as a campaign consultant for Colón and other elected officials.

Now living in Arizona, Hallinan still works in public relations, political consulting and crisis management as the owner of two small companies, one still based in New Mexico. Under the name James Hallinan Duran, he recently issued a news release in which he said he'd been "tapped" as one of the 50 most influential Hispanic Americans to attend a diplomatic summit in El Paso.

In recent weeks, Hallinan has been thrown into the crosshairs of the governor's race as his accusations against the governor have resurfaced in attack ads purchased by GOP gubernatorial candidate Mark Ronchetti and the Republican Governors Association.

During the last televised gubernatorial debate, a reporter asked Lujan Grisham why she settled the sexual harassment complaint while insisting she did nothing wrong. Lujan Grisham deflected.

"These are really a continuation of the Mark Ronchetti campaign working diligently on baseless and, frankly, desperate character attacks," she said before falsely claiming her campaign had "provided absolute disclosure about this issue."

While settlement payments to a law firm representing Hallinan appeared in the governor's campaign finance reports, which are public record, they were listed only as "legal expenses" and didn't reveal the link to Hallinan's sexual harassment complaint.

Hallinan said he's been an unwilling participant in the campaign fisticuffs between Lujan Grisham and Ronchetti.

But it's had repercussions on his life, he said, adding he called State Police on Wednesday to report death threats made via social media. At The New Mexican's request, the agency on Thursday released a police report and dispatch recordings of Hallinan's calls to police.

"I'm the guy that the governor grabbed my [expletive] and did a lot of other bad things to me. I'm that guy," Hallinan said in one of the calls.

The police report notes Hallinan, who was in Pennsylvania when he called State Police, "seemed extremely agitated and unable to speak in complete sentences." In two separate calls with dispatchers, he hung up both times.

Hallinan, who claims he also spoke with Department of Public Safety Secretary Jason Bowie, said he fears for his safety. He posted a screenshot on Twitter from an account that states, in part, "watch your mouth the desert here is very large." Bowie's spokesman did not return a message seeking comment.

Hallinan also said he's fed up with being made out to be the bad guy and that he doesn't understand why Lujan Grisham has been given a "free pass" when men in politics have been held accountable for their bad behavior.

"It's a weird thing to talk about, you know, that a male is going to be abused by a female, right? But it's a female in power," he said. "Why is it OK for a female to treat a male like she did and it's not OK for females getting molested by men? ... That really frustrates me. It's my [expletive] life. Why is it OK for Michelle to do the bad things that she did but [former New York Gov.] Andrew Cuomo and everybody else has to go away?"

Hallinan, an openly gay man, questioned whether his sexuality is a factor.

"Think about this," he said. "If I was a female and the governor was a male, oh my God, it'd be like the biggest scandal in the the world. She'd be done."

Although concerned Lujan Grisham and her legal team will try to "claw back the money" from the settlement, he said it was never about the money in the first place. He also said he has nothing to lose.

"They've ruined my life so much and my family's life so much, I don't [expletive] care anymore," he said.

Asked for comment, Lujan Grisham's campaign issued a lengthy statement.

It read, in part, that the settlement resolved "numerous dubious and disputed potential claims made by Mr. Hallinan arising from his employment in 2018 with the campaign organization and his subsequent search for employment.

"The Governor and the campaign stand by the statement — agreed to by Mr. Hallinan — and deny that there is any merit or truth to his allegations," the campaign wrote.

For his part, Hallinan said he settled after a year of difficult negotiations that affected his mental health.

While he has described the alleged groping incident in the past, he detailed the circumstances that led up to it with The New Mexican.

He said he was at a senior campaign meeting at the home of former Rep. Deborah Armstrong when he voiced disapproval of two campaign ads the group was screening.

"I'm not a yes man," he said.

One of the ads, which highlighted crime, had been filmed in more affluent areas, he said.

"All the while, Michelle is wearing Manolo Blahniks and an opulent pearl necklace," he said. Manolo Blahnik is a brand of designer shoes. Hallinan added that Lujan Grisham "got real mad" when he expressed his disapproval of the first ad.

Hallinan said he also criticized Lujan Grisham's appearance in the second ad.

"She got real pissed off at me for saying she needed to look more Hispanic and not look like an elitist person," he said. "In the first commercial, I raised the same thing and said, 'Maybe we don't have to have you have the bleach blond hair and the opulent pearl necklace.' She got real pissed off."

Lujan Grisham lashed out the second time he expressed his opinion, he said.

"That's when she grabbed the water bottle, which was probably about 75 percent full, and dumped it on my crotch ... and then she does the slap and grab," he said.

He said he went into the kitchen of Armstrong's home and tried to dry off.

"Literally, I'm trying to comprehend, 'Did this really happen?' " he said.

Armstrong and others who were in the room have refuted Hallinan's allegations.

After the alleged groping, Hallinan said he told the group he was leaving and called Morales, Balderas and Colón.

Although he received a settlement, he claimed Lujan Grisham hasn't been held accountable for her actions.

"She is getting the free pass, and it's ridiculous," he said. "Just because I'm a manly homosexual does not mean I don't matter for being molested."

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Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.