LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California woman on Tuesday said she was raped by Rep. Eric Swalwell in 2018 and now plans to make a report to law enforcement.
Lonna Drewes said during a news conference that the assault occurred at a hotel in Southern California. She said she had one glass of wine that evening and believes Swalwell drugged her before raping her. Swalwell dropped out of the California governor’s race on Sunday and said he would resign from Congress this week following earlier allegations of sexual assault from a different woman.
“I did not consent to any sexual activity,” Drewes said.
Attorney Sara Azari released a statement Tuesday on Swalwell's behalf saying he “categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of sexual misconduct and assault that has been leveled against him." She pledged to "pursue every available legal remedy against those responsible for orchestrating this reprehensible campaign of lies.”
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EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of sexual assault. If you or someone you know needs help, please call 1-800-656-4673 for the national sexual assault hotline in the U.S.
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Drewes' allegation comes a day after Swalwell said he would resign from Congress following other allegations of sexual misconduct, including at least two other alleged incidents of nonconsensual sex. Other women have accused him of sending them inappropriate messages and nude photos. Swalwell denied the prior accusations of sexual assault but said he had made unspecified errors in judgment.
Drewes said she did not undergo a rape kit but disclosed the alleged assault to people close to her and documented it in her journal. She said she discussed the alleged rape during therapy sessions at a sexual assault center in Connecticut.
Attorney Lisa Bloom said those journal entries, along with text messages and photographs, will be included in the forthcoming report to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
Drewes said she was working as a model and owned a fashion software company based in Beverly Hills when she met Swalwell. He offered to help her with connections to further her company and knew she had an interest in local politics.
She had met him twice before the night when she says he raped her. That night, the two met at a restaurant opening and were set to attend a political event, she said. On their way to the event, Drewes said Swalwell wanted to stop back at his hotel room to get some paperwork. By the time they reached the room, she said her limbs felt heavy and she felt like she had been drugged.
Swalwell raped her and later choked her, causing her to lose consciousness, she said.
In a letter read on the House floor, Swalwell said his resignation is effective as of 2 p.m. Tuesday.
“I am deeply sorry to my family, staff and constituents for mistakes in judgment I have made in my past. I will fight the serious, false allegations made against me,” a clerk said in reading the letter. “However I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make.”
Swalwell's abrupt downfall followed allegations published in the San Francisco Chronicle and later by CNN.
