Sexual Harassment Claim against Hastings gets Extra 45-Day Review

The House Ethics Committee will spend another 45 days reviewing claims that U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Miramar, sexually harassed a member of his staff and sought to retaliate when she refused his advances, Politico is reporting.

Winsome Packer, a former staffer on the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, which was chaired by Hastings, claims that she was the victim of 'unwelcome sexual advances' and 'unwelcome touching' by the congressman, Politico reports. Packer has filed a lawsuit against Hastings asserting that the Florida Democrat retaliated against her when she objected to his behavior.

The Wall Street Journal reported on June 22 that a congressional ethics panel is investigating Packer's allegations.

Judicial Watch is assisting Packer in her legal casework.

Hastings, who has denied the accusations, has asked a U.S. District Court in Washington to throw out the claims, saying the case should be handled according to congressionally approved administrative and judicial remedies -- not where Packer lodged her complaint.

She was the commission's staff representative in Vienna from 2008 to 2010 when Hastings was co-chairman of the commission, better known as Helsinki Commission.

Hastings, in his filing with the U.S. District Court, added that Packer's lawsuit was aimed at drumming up sales of a novel she has written about intrigue and race in Washington politics.