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Former top producer of Good Morning America Michael Corn is being accused of sexual assault by an ABC News staffer.
Kirstyn Crawford, an anchor producer for George Stephanopoulos on GMA, filed a lawsuit against Corn and ABC in the supreme court of the state of New York, which claims Corn assaulted her during a business trip to Los Angeles in 2015 and the company was aware of the incident, as well as similar previous ones involving Corn, Yahoo.com reports.
Crawford's lawsuit claims the two individuals were in an Uber going back to their hotel during a business trip when, “Corn grabbed Crawford’s hand and told her that he wanted to be able to help her with her career … He grabbed Crawford’s head and pulled it into his chest and kept telling her to ‘just relax’ and kept asking ‘Why are you tense?’”
The lawsuit accuses Corn of then kissing Crawford on the head and rubbing her legs, with Corn allegedly accusing Crawford of being "insecure" and asking her if she had "daddy issues."
The lawsuit also accuses Corn of assaulting another staffer, Jill McClain, when they worked together on ABC's World News Tonight program approximately a decade ago, though McClain is not a plaintiff, rather supporting Crawford's case, according to Yahoo.
The lawsuit accuses Corn of assaulting McClain on two different occasions during ABC business trips, which included groping her on a flight and in a hotel room.
Additionally, Corn is accused of creating a toxic work environment and the lawsuit accuses ABC of being aware of complaints against the former producer as early as 2017, but not taking action.
“Instead, ABC looked the other way, elevated Corn through the ranks due to his commercial success as a producer, and facilitated the hostile workplace that Corn cultivated through his influence over subordinates’ careers, sexual harassment, gaslighting, and anger management issues,” the lawsuit stated.
Corn left ABC in April without providing a reason for his departure publicly prior to joining Nexstar Media Group as the president of news in May.
“Kirstyn Crawford’s claims are demonstrably false … Jill McClain’s allegations are equally as fabricated … I will be pursuing all available legal remedies against these women and defending myself vigorously,” Corn said in a statement regarding the lawsuit via the Wall Street Journal.
An ABC spokesperson issued the following statement in relation to the lawsuit via the Wall Street Journal: "We are committed to upholding a safe and supportive work environment and have a process in place that thoroughly reviews and addresses complaints that are made. ABC News disputes the claims made against it and will address this matter in court.”