A second woman has accused Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault.
The woman's lawyer said in a statement Friday her client was raped by Fairfax in 2000 when they were both students at Duke University. The statement goes on to say the "attack was premeditated and aggressive" and that the two "were friends, but never dated or had any romantic relationship." The woman allegedly told her friends immediately after it happened in a series of emails and Facebook messages, which her lawyer says "are now in [her] possession."
She came forward a few days after another woman accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex on him while working at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston.
Fairfax has denied both allegations. He said in a statement Wednesday that his interaction with the first woman was consensual and that "at no time did she express ... any discomfort or concern" during or after the encounter. Fairfax also issued a statement shortly after the second woman came forward, calling the allegation "demonstrably false" and demanded a full investigation into her claims. And despite widespread calls for Fairfax to step down, including from the former governor of Virginia, he said he will not resign.
This is the latest in a string of controversies to hit some of Virginia's top politicians. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam is facing calls to resign over a photo from his medical school yearbook showing a person who appears to be in blackface next to a person in a Ku Klux Klan costume on a page devoted to the governor. And Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring openly admitted Wednesday that he wore blackface while in college.
Additional reporting from Newsy affiliate CNN.
