Lee’s filing adds to Gillio Lopes’s separate challenge to James’s appointment, which a judge will hear Oct. 29. Lopes’s attorney, Andrew Miltenberg, argues that James’s public support for the accuser before her appointment raised questions about her impartiality. James has not been removed.
Prosecutors reopened the investigation after the former student filed her lawsuit in September. Hochul appointed James after saying she had lost faith in the Tompkins County district attorney’s ability to oversee the case fairly. Before her appointment, James wrote, “What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable.” Asked about that statement, she said, “I will not comment on a Facebook post.” Hochul defended James’s ability to examine the facts and draw proper conclusions.