Mayor Murray believes allegations are coordinated, politically motivated

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray took some questions from reporters during a bill-signing ceremony on Friday about sex abuse allegations leveled against him.

RELATED: Second Murray accuser speaks out

KIRO 7’s Graham Johnson asked Murray if he could lead the city while fighting the allegations.

The mayor answered, “I’m on this job every single day and I believe I have hired the best department heads this city has ever had. I work this job 24/7 since the day I was sworn in.  I love this job more than anything else I do.”

Councilmember Sally Bagshaw spoke up, even though her colleague, Bruce Harrell, said on Tuesday that the council would remain focused on leading the city.

“I want you to know I have faith in this mayor. I have faith in his vision, I have faith in his commitment to make this city the best place it can be for all of us,” Bagshaw said. “I also have faith in my council colleagues, that we are going to continue to keep our eye on the ball.”

Earlier on Friday, The Stranger published a guest editorial written by the mayor. In it, Murray writes about the accusations made last week that he calls the “shock of my life.”

“I have denied this accusation, and will continue to do so,” Murray writes. “It is simply not true.”

Mayor Murray, who says he has a “deep respect for the press,” calls out The Seattle Times for not giving him an opportunity “to present the Seattle Times with any information or evidence that might refute the accusation made against me, or to demonstrate that the story was verifiable false and that is [sic] should not, could not be printed.”

The Kent man currently suing Murray, known as D.H., alleges the mayor molested and raped him as a teenager in the 1980s.

The man was a troubled youth who, at the time, was homeless, using drugs, and whose parents were also addicted to drugs. According to The Seattle Times, the man — then a teen — was addicted to crack-cocaine. Court documents state that the teen met Murray on the bus and the two “developed a friendly interaction.” Murray was 32 years old at the time.

In the lawsuit, the man describes the inside of Murray’s former Capitol Hill apartment, gives his old phone number, and describes the mayor’s genitalia. That detail included a description of a mole or bump. The Seattle Times reports two other men have accused Murray of sexual abuse in the past decade.

Murray’s private attorney said earlier this week that the description of Murray’s physical appearance — which is at the “heart of the allegations” — is false. An examination found no mole or evidence of removal.

Bob Sulkin, Murray’s attorney, added that a 2015 examination “found no abnormalities in that area.”

“This is game-changing,” he said, adding that this proves the case has no credibility, “and should be dropped.”

Mayor Murray alleges conspiracy

According to the Times, two other men have also accused Murray of abuse in the ’80s — no formal charges were filed. But Mayor Murray writes that it all circles back to political motivation.

He notes that the previous accuser — who has a criminal history of forgery, identity theft and other dishonesty — tried to get money from him in the past. Mayor Murray also points out that both accusers described the mole on his private area, which he reminds readers that he disproved. Murray writes, “Not only does this evidence show that the accusers have fabricated their claims against me, but I believe it shows they have coordinated with each other.”

But the mayor goes beyond that, linking together a political conspiracy waged by people with a right-leaning agenda.

Since 2008, the virulently bigoted Faith & Freedom Network has actively opposed my work to champion LGBTQ rights, and has openly resented my successful effort to pass the civil rights bill in 2008 and marriage equality in 2012.

The president and founder of the Faith & Freedom Network is Gary Randall. Murray writes that Randall has admitted that he pitched the previous accusations of sexual abuse to The Seattle Times in 2008. He also wrote about the allegations in 2012, during the marriage equality debate. Murray moves on to the current lawsuit and alleges a link between its accusations and another civil rights effort he is “championing” — transgender rights.

Murray then points to Jack Connelly, a man who has donated $50,000 to the Just Want Privacy campaign. Just Want Privacy is the organization attempting to ban transgender individuals from using facilities that align with their gender identity. And he further writes that Connelly’s law firm is representing the current accuser known as D.H.

Indeed, the accuser’s primary attorney has admitted in the press that his partner holds firm anti-LGTBQ positions … These are not coincidences. Given the involvement of right wing organizations, the LGBTQ community should be extremely concerned, and I will continue to explore the connections between my accusers, anti-LGBTQ groups and each other. It is also not a coincidence that the lawsuit was timed to be filed just weeks before the campaign filing deadline, with the opposing counsel attempting to rush to depose me before the deadline as well. In the legal filing, the accuser admits that he seeks to remove me as mayor.

Read Murray’s entire account here.

KIRO 7’s Graham Johnson contributed to this story.

Follow @http://twitter.com/Mynorthwest