Earlier this year, when a former aide to then Sen. Joe Biden accused the Democratic presidential candidate of sexually assaulting her in 1993, two people came forward to say that the woman, Tara Reade, had told them of the incident shortly after it allegedly occurred: her brother, Collin Moulton, and a friend who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation.
Now, two more sources have come forward to corroborate certain details about Reade’s claims. One of the sources is a former neighbor of the accuser, who says Reade discussed the allegations in detail in the mid-1990s, according to the New York Times and Business Insider.
“This happened, and I know it did because I remember talking about it,” Lynda LaCasse, who lived next door to Reade in the mid-1990s, told The Insider.
The other source, Lorraine Sanchez, who worked with Reade in the office of a California state senator in the mid-1990s, said that she recalls Reade complaining at the time that her former boss in Washington DC had sexually harassed her, and that she had been fired after raising concerns.
The women come forward just days after video emerged of a woman that Reade says is her mother calling into CNN’s Larry King Live in 1993 to talk about her daughter’s “problems” with a prominent senator.
Earlier this month, Reade filed a report with the DC Metropolitan Police department memorializing her allegations about the 1993 incident and said: “I wanted to make it clear that I would be willing to go under oath or cooperate with any law enforcement regarding it, because it did happen. Even if it was 26 years ago.”
In a statement on Saturday, the department said the case had been “moved to an inactive status.”
Reade said she expected that outcome, and said she is not backing down.
“I’d like to be heard in a fair and objective way,” she said. “And I’d also like to hear Joe Biden’s response, which has not happened. My hope is that the conversation will move forward and we will examine how I was treated when I came forward, and really look at the fact that, like domestic violence, sexual assault and sexual harassment is not a partisan issue. It is an equal opportunity offender,” she added, according to the Insider.
Joe Biden has not addressed the accusations, but a campaign spokesperson says the allegations are false.
