FILE - In this Feb. 22, 2019 file photo, Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax presides over the Senate session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. One of the two women accusing Fairfax of sexual assault says his response has been "disgraceful, irresponsible and manipulative." In an interview aired Monday, April 1 with CBS News, Vanessa Tyson criticized Fairfax for comparing himself to lynching victims when he defended himself in a speech on the state Senate floor in February. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
April 02, 2019 - 5:48 AM
RICHMOND, Va. - The second of two women to accuse Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault says she has nothing to gain by going public with her allegation.
Meredith Watson said in an interview aired Tuesday with CBS that she's been subjected to intense scrutiny since accusing Fairfax of raping her when both were students at Duke University in 2000.
She said she's faced particular criticism as a black woman because her accusations have tarred the reputation of Fairfax, who also is black.
Fairfax says his encounters with both Watson and his initial accuser, Vanessa Tyson, were consensual, and he says a polygraph test proved it.
Watson said Tuesday that Fairfax held her down during the attack and that "if you have to hold someone down, it's not consensual."
News from © The Associated Press, 2019