Content warning: This story contains information about sexual harassment and domestic violence.
A recent investigation released by the city of Madison found there was insufficient evidence to prove that District 18 Ald. Charles Myadze committed significant workplace harassment, despite at least three women alleging he sexually harassed them.
The incident does not qualify as workplace harassment because Myadze’s behavior did not disrupt the women’s ability to perform their jobs, according to the investigation.
One of the women was District 2 Ald. Julianna Bennett, who spoke with The Daily Cardinal on Saturday about her mindset once the investigation concluded.
“My case was revised because I maintained a professional relationship after Ald. Myadze threatened me,” Bennett told the Cardinal. “Since as a society we condition women to keep the peace, it is common for women to remain cordial in the face of abuse. Our legal system should reflect this nuance.”
In a statement released Thursday, Bennett said Myadze made continuous, unwanted and sexually inappropriate advances toward her at a 2022 conference in Washington, D.C. Once she returned home, and he found out she had reported the incident to other alders, he cornered her in his car and threatened her aggressively.
“I was paralyzed with fear,” Bennett said in the statement. “Ald. Myadze made it abundantly clear that if I were to speak about this situation again, he would punish me with retaliatory actions on Council.”
Three other women came forward against Myadze with similar allegations of unwanted sexual advances and threats, and multiple former partners have accused him of physical assault, including former deputy mayor and mayoral candidate Gloria Reyes.
Bennett told the Cardinal that legal reform is in order, sharing how women in these situations are often conditioned to “keep the peace” and remain cordial during abuse.
Independent elected officials, such as alders, are not under the same jurisdiction as city employees, according to a statement from Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway. Bennett told the Cardinal the Common Council should include alders under the employee section of the city’s code of conduct, which would create a clearer path to “holding alders that engage in misconduct accountable.”
The initial investigation into Myadze conducted Aug. 9 found sufficient evidence of workplace hostility and harassment but was recently revised after Myadze’s attorney requested the case be reopened.
Myadze submitted in a written declaration, among other documents, that he believes a “campaign was orchestrated” to discredit him. Myadze has denied all domestic violence and sexual harassment allegations, according to the investigation report,
"I fully cooperated with the independent investigation into the various allegations, and I was pleased though not surprised, that the investigator found that none of the complaints against me were sustained by the evidence,” Myadze said in a statement to Channel 3000 Thursday.
District 8 Ald. MGR Govindarajan said Myadze’s actions “are unbecoming of an elected official” and called for Myadze to resign immediately from the Common Council.
“Elected officials should be held to a higher standard of conduct,” he told the Cardinal.
Rhodes-Conway said in a statement Thursday that further courses of action are in the hands of the “public and the political process.”
“While such behavior may be normalized elsewhere, I would hope that in Madison we have higher standards," Rhodes-Conway said.
Bennett said the “intense power imbalance” and severity of his threats led her to keep silent.
“After spending over two years of being afraid of Ald. Myadze or what might happen to me if I went public, I now feel the strength of standing in my truth,” Bennett said. “It’s not easy to stand up, but once you do, the strength and power you feel from being free from abuse is so worth it.”
Student support and community resources are available via University Health Services’ crisis line at (608) 265-5600, option 9.
Ella Hanley is the associate news editor for The Daily Cardinal. She has written breaking, city, state and campus news. Follow her on Twitter at @ellamhanley.
