Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax accuser comes forward to describe alleged sexual assault: 'I never gave any form of consent'

The woman accusing Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax (D) of sexual assault has just come forward with a statement.

Dr. Vanessa Tyson on Wednesday described in her own words the alleged assault previously reported in The Washington Post, which did not disclose her name. Tyson, a professor at Scripps College who says she is a "proud Democrat," writes that in 2004, she met Fairfax at the Democratic National Convention and that he asked her to accompany him on a "quick errand" to his hotel room.

Once there, Tyson alleges that "what began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault." She describes in graphic detail how Fairfax allegedly forced her to perform oral sex, saying that she "tried to move away" but couldn't because "his hand was holding down my neck." Fairfax in a statement said the encounter was "consensual" and that "at no time did [Tyson] express to me any discomfort or concern." Tyson, however, says that she "cried and gagged" and said "I cannot believe, given my obvious distress, that Mr. Fairfax thought this forced sexual act was consensual."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Tyson also writes that she suffered "deep humiliation and shame" and therefore "did not speak about it for years" until 2017, when she reached out to the Post. In a report Monday, the Post had said it was unable to corroborate the account of either Tyson or Fairfax and, therefore, originally declined to publish the story. However, the Post denied that it initially didn't publish because of "red flags" in Tyson's account, as Fairfax had claimed, and Tyson says that "my only motive in speaking now is to refute Mr. Fairfax's falsehoods and aspersions of my character."

Read Tyson's statement below. Brendan Morrow