Nytimes: Labor Secretary’s Husband Barred From Department HQ After Assault Claims
The nytimes coverage details that Dr. Shawn DeRemer, the husband of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, has been barred from the Labor Department’s headquarters after at least two female staff members said he touched them inappropriately at the agency — a development that has intersected with a police complaint and the department’s internal probes.
nytimes: Security footage and a Jan. 24 police report
One alleged incident occurred on the morning of Dec. 18 and was recorded on office security cameras in the Labor Department’s building on Constitution Avenue, the nytimes material states; the video showed Dr. DeRemer giving one of the women an extended embrace and was reviewed as part of a criminal investigation. The Metropolitan Police Department filed a report on Jan. 24 describing a complaint of forced sexual contact at the Labor Department address.
Barred from the Frances Perkins building and a building restriction notice
After the women described the incidents to investigators, Dr. DeRemer, 57, was barred from entering the department’s premises. A building restriction notice says, "If Mr. DeRemer attempts to enter, he is to be asked to leave. " The main Labor Department building is named for Frances Perkins and sits on Constitution Avenue in Washington; Dr. DeRemer is an anesthesiologist who lives in Portland, Ore., and had frequently visited his wife’s Washington offices.
Inspector general probe and staff placed on leave
The Labor Department’s inspector general opened an internal investigation in January that has examined alleged misconduct by Secretary Chavez-DeRemer and members of her senior staff. That inquiry includes a separate formal complaint alleging an inappropriate sexual relationship between the secretary and a member of her security detail, and allegations that the secretary took staff to strip clubs and used taxpayer funds for personal trips. Several aides and security staff in the secretary’s inner circle have been placed on administrative or investigative leave while the inspector general’s office continues its work.
The police spokesman noted the Jan. 24 report is the only police report in the last three months tied to the Labor Department’s address, and the Metropolitan Police Department’s sexual assault unit is investigating the matter. Dr. DeRemer did not respond to a request for comment; a Labor Department spokeswoman did not provide a comment, and the secretary’s lawyer declined to comment.
Next steps are focused on those active inquiries: the Metropolitan Police Department’s sexual assault unit is pursuing its criminal investigation, and the Labor Department inspector general’s office is continuing its internal probe into the broader misconduct allegations.
