N.Y. Assemblyman Juan Ardila’s critics blast self-funded probe into sexual assault accusations by two women

Assemblyman Juan Ardilla came under fire Tuesday for releasing a self-funded report challenging accusations that he made unwanted sexual advances toward two women nearly eight years ago.

The report, first reported by the Daily News, relied on interviews with one of his accusers, Ardila himself and several witnesses who also attended a 2015 Halloween party where Ardila’s encounters with the two women took place. Ardila, a Queens Democrat, now maintains his contact with the women was consensual — a perspective he laid out in his most recent statement Monday — the first in which he explicitly denied committing sexual assault.

In prior statements, Ardila made no such denial, and instead offered apologies and floated the idea of pursuing restorative justice to find closure.

But Monday’s developments in the saga have led Ardila’s detractors to double down on their criticism of the assemblyman, some of whom have called on him to resign.

State Sen. Kristen Gonzalez, a Dem whose Queens district overlaps with Ardila’s, called the investigation a “stunt” that demonstrated his “inability to accept responsibility.”

“The more he continues to dig his heels and make veiled attempts to victim blame through his sponsored investigation, the less likely it is that his district receives the representation it deserves,” she said.

The first accuser to come forward claims she was extremely drunk when Ardila “got handsy” with her while sitting together on a couch at the party and then began walking her to a bathroom, at which point a friend intervened. The second woman claims that later that night Ardila pulled her into the bathroom, began kissing her and then exposed himself and began masturbating.

In the report he commissioned by hiring a private law firm, Ardila claims he kissed the second accuser and guided her hand to his crotch. He denied exposing himself or masturbating in front of her. He also described his first accuser as not being visibly intoxicated at the time and said he and she exchanged a brief kiss.

“If Ardila won’t resign and the only institution that can hold him accountable has done all it can, I hope to see legislators hold him accountable on an individual level. Sadly, not enough of them have yet stepped up. Maybe this shameful display will change their minds,” Erica Vladimer, co-founder of the Sexual Harassment Working Group, wrote on Twitter.

“And let’s be clear: forcibly touching someone else — touching them when they’re incapable of consenting — is against the law — period. Claiming your gross conduct doesn’t ‘constitute sexual misconduct’ isn’t the exoneration Juan thinks it is.”

It was not immediately clear which accusation Vladimer was referring to in her statement.

The accusations, which were first reported in the Queens Chronicle in March, have made Ardila’s political life difficult, but they have not ended it.

Last month, Assembly Democrats stripped him of his ability to dole out money intended for causes in his district and transferred that responsibility to Assemblyman Jeffrion Aubry (D-Queens).

City Councilwoman Julie Won (D-Queens), who has sharply criticized Ardila, went so far as to say he should be registered as a sex offender — a prospect Ardila’s report suggests would be impossible, given that the statute of limitations for any criminal prosecution has passed.

“Instead of engaging in the process of restorative justice as he pledged, Juan paid a high-powered law firm to intimidate and silence his victims, under the pretense of this ‘independent report,’ ” Won said in a statement. “Juan Ardila must resign, face justice, and live out his remaining days as a known sex offender.”

Ardila shot back at Won, saying that he’s “disappointed but not surprised” by her “malicious and factually inaccurate statement.”

“Women should have the safest environment to come forward with claims of sexual misconduct,” he added. “But those claims should be inquired before declaring that someone must be sentenced to the political death penalty.”