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Andrew Delancey has accused Justin Wells of assaulting him in 2008 and says Fox News knew of Wells's behavior.
A gay former Fox News employee has sued Tucker Carlson’s longtime producer Justin Wells, accusing Wells of sexual assault and harassment.
Andrew Delancey filed suit in New York State Court against Wells, Fox News Media, and Fox Corporation. He alleges in the filing that he was at Wells's apartment in New York City in 2008 before the two of them were to meet other colleagues for drinks. Wells at one point pushed him onto his bed in the studio apartment and violently grabbed his genitals, the suit says.
Delancey told a female colleague about the alleged assault shortly thereafter, he says in the suit. A superior who had also been accused of misconduct had repeatedly tried to dissuade Delancey from going to HR to file complaints against Wells, according to the suit.
At the time, Wells, who is out, was working on a Greta Van Susteren show. He would later be promoted to serve as senior executive director of Carlson’s show before it was canceled and Carlson was fired. Wells was sacked too.
Wells now produces Carlson’s show on X, formerly Twitter.
Wells first contacted Delancey in 2007 when both were part of a Facebook group for Fox employees, the suit says. Delancey at the time worked for a local Fox station in Florida.
He moved to New York City, where he was lavished with attention by Wells, according to the suit.
About a month into working at Fox, Delancey and Wells were supposed to meet other Fox employees at a gay bar called the Barracuda Lounge. Before going to meet them, Wells suggested having a drink at his apartment.
“Before Mr. Delancey could finish half of his drink, out of nowhere, Wells aggressively pushed Mr. Delancey onto his bed where he violently forced his tongue into Mr. Delancey’s mouth. At the time, Wells had a more muscular build than Mr. Delancey, and easily overpowered him,” the suit states.
Delancey alleges that Wells attempted to rip off Delancey’s pants and caused him “severe pain” after Wells “aggressively grabbed Mr. Delancey’s genitals.”
He says he yelled no and eventually slowed Wells. Delancey claims Wells assaulted him again in the apartment stairwell by grabbing him and trying to force his hands down his pants.
Delancey went public in 2017 about being sexually assaulted but didn’t name Wells.
In the suit, Delancey says Wells contacted him after Delancey posted about the assault, inquiring, “Who was it?”
“After suffering in silence for many years, Mr. Delancey was inspired by the countless brave victims that filed claims under New York’s Adult Survivors Act. Mr. Delancey will no longer be intimidated by Justin Wells or Fox. Our firm is committed to holding Mr. Wells and Fox accountable for their unlawful and abhorrent actions,” one of Delancey’s attorneys, Alfredo Pelicci, said in a statement shared with The Advocate.
The law firm representing Wells said in a statement, “This meritless legal action was filed 15 years after the alleged incident and mere days before the extended statute of limitations would have run. Mr. Wells denies the allegations unequivocally, and will contest them vigorously. This is yet another attempt by a law firm with a history of suing Fox and its former employees to cash in on frivolous allegations.”
Carlson has also weighed in on the lawsuit.
“As a general matter, if you believe you’ve been the victim of a sex crime, you have a moral obligation to alert police, so it doesn’t happen to someone else. If you wait 15 years to cash in with a civil suit, no one should take you seriously. I certainly don’t,” Carlson said in a statement provided by Wells' lawyers on behalf of the former Fox News pundit.
The Advocate has also reached out to Fox News for comment.
