Justin Fairfax placed on leave by his law firm after rape allegation – Washington Examiner

Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax has been placed on leave by his law firm as it investigates the sexual assault allegations against him.

Washington, D.C.-based Morrison Foerster “has retained outside counsel to conduct an investigation. During the investigation, Justin Fairfax has taken a leave of absence from Morrison & Foerster. Justin has agreed to cooperate with the firm’s investigation,” Larren M. Nashelsky, chairman of the firm, said in a statement.

A number of prominent Democrats, including former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, and several members of Congress have called on Fairfax to resign but it could be that financial pressure is what forces him out.
The law firm’s decision is a major blow for Fairfax, depriving him of his main source of income.

Outside employment is common for Virginia lieutenant governors. Other than serving as presiding office — and potential tiebreaking vote — in the state Senate, the lieutenant governor has only a smattering of other official duties. The job pays $36,321 annually.

“We take the allegations against Justin very seriously,” Nashelsky added. “As a firm, we believe that it is important to seriously listen to any allegation of sexual assault or harassment, and to treat all persons making such allegations with respect and sensitivity.”

Bill Bolling, a former Republican lieutenant governor who served 2006-2014, worked in insurance on the side. And now-Gov. Ralph Northam practiced medicine during his 2014-2018 tenure as lieutenant governor.

On Feb. 4, it emerged that Fairfax, 39, a rising Democratic star, had been accused by college professor Vanessa Tyson of sexual assault at a hotel during the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. On Feb. 8, a second woman, Meredith Watson, came forward with sexual assault allegations against Fairfax, alleging that he raped her while both were undergraduates at Duke University.

Fairfax has denied both charges, saying his encounters with the women were consensual. Fairfax has said repeatedly he won’t resign from his state office, and has called for the FBI to probe the accusations.

He has also tied the allegations to controversies facing two other top Democratic elected officials in Virginia. For 10 days, Gov. Ralph Northam has faced calls for resignation after revelations of his 1984 medical school year book, showing images on his page of individuals dressed in blackface and a KKK outfit. Attorney General Mark Herring then admitted he had dressed in blackface for a party as a University of Virginia student in 1980.

Fairfax, joined Morrison Foerster in September 2018, seven months after becoming Virginia’s lieutenant governor. The Columbia Law School graduate and former federal prosecutor “advises clients on a variety of white collar and commercial litigation matters,” according to his page on the firm’s website still active as of Monday morning.

“He has extensive experience counseling and representing clients on a broad range of litigation matters, including internal, securities, and Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) investigations,” it states.

Fairfax’s LinkedIn page also showed him with the firm, as of Monday morning.