Stringer vows appeal after Manhattan judge dismisses defamation suit against sex harass accuser

Former city Comptroller Scott Stringer is planning to appeal a Manhattan Supreme Court justice’s dismissal of the defamation suit he filed against Jean Kim, the woman who accused him of sexual misconduct during his 2021 bid to become mayor.

Justice Richard Latin wrote in a two-page court filing dated Friday that he was granting Kim’s motion to dismiss Stringer’s lawsuit, which accused her of “lies” that caused “irreparable harm to him and his political future.”

Stringer’s lawyer announced Monday that the Manhattan politico plans to fight that decision, which was first reported by Politico, in state appellate court.

“A family name was dragged through the mud and the people of this city were denied a fair election based on lies,” Stringer’s attorney Milton Williams said. “The truth is important, and we will aggressively appeal this decision in order to ensure the truth is heard and justice is served.”

Stringer wasn’t the only one to experience a legal setback in the case. In his ruling Friday, the judge also denied Kim’s motion demanding that Stringer pay her legal fees.

In his defamation case against Kim, the Upper West Side Democrat attempted to poke several holes in her claim that he made unwanted advances toward her.

His team has pointed to a sworn affidavit from Kim’s sister Susan Kim, in which she doesn’t explicitly corroborate Jean Kim’s claims. In that statement, Susan Kim said that “while Jean did not tell me the explicit details of Mr. Stringer’s sexual assaults in the immediate aftermath, there was an unmistakable moment during the campaign where my sister became demonstrably distressed and traumatized.”

Stringer’s team has also claimed that an affidavit from Jean Kim’s husband, Anthony Caifano, does not match the time line of how events unfolded.

Caifano said in a sworn statement in February that a Stringer campaign ad that ran “near the end of April 2021″ is what ultimately prompted his wife to go public with her accusation.

But Stringer countered in his own affidavit that that’s “impossible” because his first TV ad didn’t air until April 28, 2021 — “the day of Ms. Kim’s press conference, which was one day after reporters were briefed on the allegations she planned to make.”

While Stringer pursues his appeal, Kim is continuing to pursue a separate lawsuit under the state’s Adult Survivors Act.

”Despite the win in the defamation suit, Ms. Kim is proceeding forward with litigation against Mr. Stringer in the case for sexual assault,” said Kim’s lawyer in that suit, Jessica Pride.

Pride said Stringer brought that lawsuit on himself.

“The truth will come out, and justice needs to be served,” Pride said. “This is an example that survivors will not be silenced. ... Kim had let this go, and Mr. Stringer chose to bring it back up and to go after Ms. Kim, and she had no choice but to defend herself and to hold him accountable.”