Source: WRAL
North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore, a man known for his thirst for power, is once again accused of abusing his power – this time for sexual favors, according to a new lawsuit.
Scott Lassiter, a former Apex Town Council member and current Wake County Public School System assistant principal, filed a lawsuit against Moore last week, accusing him of having an affair with his wife for more than three years that resulted in the “destruction” of his marriage, WRAL reported.
The lawsuit accuses Moore of having a sexual relationship with Lassiter’s wife, Jamie Liles Lassiter, the executive director of the North Carolina Conference of Clerks of Superior Court, an organization that works with those in the legislature.
North Carolina is one of the few states that still allows a spouse who was cheated on to sue someone for interfering in their marriage. Lassiter is seeking more than $25,000 in damages, but the lawsuit doesn’t specify an exact amount.
The couple married nearly 10 years ago and separated in January, according to Lassiter and the lawsuit. WRAL spoke with Liles Lassiter who told them that the pair signed a separation document “years” ago.
The lawsuit claims that “Moore used his position as one of the most powerful elected officials in North Carolina to entice Plaintiff’s wife, (Liles Lassiter), a mid-level employee of the state government, to participate in an illicit relationship with him.”
Moore is accused of convincing Liles Lassiter “to engage in degrading sexual acts with him, including group sexual activity with others over whom he had power or
influence.”
He is also accused of calling and sending texts to Lassiter’s wife on his state government phone when he knew that she was with her husband “in order to interfere with [her] time with her husband.” In addition, the lawsuit claims that Moore persuaded Liles Lassiter to lie to her husband about her whereabouts so they could spend time together and also “made statements to [Liles] Lassiter that caused her to believe her job and the position of the NC Conference of Clerks would be adversely affected if she ended their relationship.”
According to the lawsuit, Lassiter discovered his wife’s affair on Dec. 21, 2022, after he followed her after she told him she was “going to a movie with one of her female friends.” Instead, Lassiter discovered his wife and Moore meeting at Sullivan’s Steakhouse in Raleigh.
Within the 22-page court filing is a photo that claims to show Moore and Liles Lassiter walking together at Sullivan’s at 11 p.m.
The lawsuit claims that “After dinner … Moore drove Mrs. Lassiter, in the Lassiters’ car, to his residence in Raleigh, where they spent hours together and, upon information and belief, had sexual intercourse.”
After finding out about the affair, Lassiter demanded that Moore meet with him to discuss the affair, the lawsuit says. The two met the day after Christmas at a Biscuitville on Western Boulevard in Raleigh. The lawsuit then claims that Moore “admitted to having a multi-year sexual relationship with” Lassiter’s wife. The lawsuit further states that Moore asked Lassiter “on a completely unrelated note” if there was anything he could do for him, “implying that he could use the power he held as Speaker in some way to benefit [Lassiter].”
Both Lassiter and his wife are registered Republicans who are “actively involved in the NCGOP” and have “attended many NCGOP functions as a couple and often interacted with Moore.” Moore had also “accepted campaign contributions from [the Lassiters] for his … election campaigns.”
Moore isn’t the only one named as a defendant in the lawsuit – there are also pictures of someone only listed as “John Doe.” Doe is accused of conspiring with Moore to install a security camera at Lassiter’s Cary home “at an angle facing [Lassiter’s] house so that it could, upon information and belief, capture photos and video recordings of events inside and outside [Lassiter’s] home.”
According to the lawsuit, the security camera was installed in order to blackmail Lassiter with photos and videos as a way to “prevent him from pursuing his valid legal claims against … Moore.”
Both Moore and Liles Lassiter have denied the claims in the lawsuit.
When reached for comment, Lassiter’s lawyer told WRAL “The complaint speaks for itself. There is irrefutable evidence to support Mr. Lassiter’s claims.”
