New York State Assembly suspends impeachment investigation of Cuomo following his resignation

The New York Assembly has suspended its investigation into potentially impeaching Andrew Cuomo following the governor's resignation announcement this week. 

The assembly "will suspend its impeachment investigation upon the governor’s resignation taking effect on August 25," Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said in a press release on Friday. 

Heastie explained that "the purpose of the Assembly Judiciary Committee’s impeachment investigation was to determine whether Governor Cuomo should remain in office," but that "the governor’s resignation answers that directive."

Additionally, legal experts determined the state constitution likely "does not authorize the legislature to impeach and remove an elected official who is no longer in office."

The evidence uncovered by the investigation prior to Cuomo's announcement "could likely have resulted in articles of impeachment had he not resigned," Heastie admitted, noting that the evidence in question concerned "not only sexual harassment and misconduct but also the misuse of state resources in relation to the publication of the governor’s memoir as well as improper and misleading disclosure of nursing home data during the COVID-19 pandemic."