“Judge” Andrew Napolitano has been fired from Fox News after a male co-worker filed a sexual harassment lawsuit. Fox Business production assistant John Fawcett alleges that executives knew about Napolitano’s behaviour, but ignored it.
This is the third time a man has accused Napolitano of sexual misconduct. The former judge is not out as a gay or bisexual man.
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Fawcett alleges that Napolitano stood “awkwardly close” to him in an elevator and rubbed his arm. He says Napolitano invited him to the analyst’s horse farm and “suggestively” said his hands “get real dirty.”
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“Upon first learning of John Fawcett’s allegations against Judge Andrew Napolitano, FOX News Media immediately investigated the claims and addressed the matter with both parties,” Fox said in a statement. “The network and Judge Napolitano have since parted ways.”
“Fox News takes all allegations of misconduct seriously,” the company added, saying it is “committed to providing a safe, transparent, and collaborative workplace environment for all our employees and took immediate, appropriate action.”
Two other men have accused Napolitano of sexual assault, saying the former judge used his power to coerce sex.
James Kruzelnick, a waiter in New Jersey, alleges that the conservative pundit made continuous sexual advances at him in 2014 and 2015 and that Napolitano forced himself on Kruzelnick while masturbating and asking to be spanked. From there, Napolitano allegedly coerced Kruzelnick into sexual acts on multiple occasions, drugged his victim and tried to rape him.
Earlier this month, Charles Corbishley filed a federal civil lawsuit against Napolitano, claiming that he was forced by the then judge to perform oral sex in 1988 while he was a defendant on Napolitano’s docket. Since then, Corbishley alleges that Napolitano has attempted to leverage law enforcement connections to keep him quiet.
Despite the sexual assault allegations, Fox kept Napolitano on air until the latest lawsuit named them as responsible parties as well.
CEO Suzanne Scott “likes to boast about implementing a ‘zero tolerance policy’ for sexual misconduct at Fox News,” Fawcett says in his lawsuit. “That ‘zero tolerance policy’ is a fraud.”
