New lawsuit alleges ex-Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli raped Montana woman, 18

Jun. 25—Dominic Foppoli, the former Wine Country politician accused of sexual misconduct by more than a dozen women, is now being accused by a Montana woman who says he raped her multiple times in 2020 when she was 18 years old.

The woman, who is identified only as Jane Doe, contends that between May and September 2020, the then-sitting mayor of Windsor sexually assaulted her after several events connected to his family-owned Christopher Creek Winery, according to a 28-page lawsuit filed May 20 in Sonoma County Superior Court. The assaults, she said, include rape, forced oral copulation and groping.

The Gallatin County, Montana, woman, now 20, could not be reached Saturday for comment.

Her Southern California lawyer, Deborah Mallgrave, said she was contacted by her client's family in fall 2021, and the latest lawsuit was filed several months later because her client "is still young."

"These are still recent events, and there is still a large amount of trauma and healing that needs to be done before sexual assault survivors are ready to come forward," Mallgrave said. "She is coming forward sooner and faster, as compared to most, because she's had support of family and other women in the process."

Her client's decision to come forward is an attempt to regain "control and power over her life."

The woman filed a police report in Montana and provided a statement to the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, Mallgrave said.

This latest complaint is separate from an ongoing suit filed in April by seven other anonymous women who accuse Foppoli of using his power, money and connections to sexually prey on them between 2001 and 2020.

Foppoli, 40, denied all of their claims in a court filing he prepared on his own behalf.

Reached Saturday, he called the newest allegations "just as frivolous and untrue as the others.

"It's another example of fair weather 'friends' trying to capitalize on a situation when they perceive an opportunity for easy money. It's despicable," Foppoli said via text message. "I would ask the public to continue to remember that one of the foundations of our country is the concept of innocent until proven guilty and I've never been proven guilty, as I am innocent."

Mallgrave disputes Foppoli's characterization of her client.

"She's definitely not doing this for money," Mallgrave said. "She wants to stop him. She wants to stop the power structure. She wants to remove his ability to continue to prey on innocent women."

The new lawsuit cites the April complaint as evidence of a "modus operandi" by Foppoli, which it claims he used to target women he met at social or professional events, lower their inhibitions through alcohol, isolate and manipulate them, and then violate them.

"Over the last 21 years, Foppoli has used his connections as the mayor of Windsor ... and his influence as a successful winery owner and businessman in Sonoma County to sexually assault numerous women, including (the Montana woman)," the new complaint says.

Detailed abuse

Foppoli first met and befriended his latest accuser's father, a wine enthusiast, in 2016. He met the woman in 2019, whenshe was 17 and a senior in high school.

According to the latest complaint, the first alleged sexual assault happened during a promotional tour for Christopher Creek Winery that brought Foppoli to Montana in 2020. The woman contends he gave her alcohol throughout the night, and kissed her when she was too intoxicated to give consent.

Over the course of several other incidents, Foppoli's advances escalated to rape, the woman's complaint says.

"Plaintiff felt shocked, violated, and ashamed. Plaintiff was also afraid to tell her parents that Foppoli had raped her. Her own shame allowed her to believe that her parents would look at her with disgust and disappointment and blame her for the disruption the rape charge would bring to their lives, their business ventures, and their networking and friends group," the complaint says.

Because of her family's relationship with Foppoli, the woman believed she was unable to avoid him. During a trip to Sonoma County with her sister, the woman alleges Foppoli repeatedly gave her alcohol and assaulted her several times.

In each of these incidents, according to the complaint, the woman said she either was intoxicated or explicitly protested his advances.

"Foppoli manipulated, coerced, defeated and essentially broke plaintiff," the complaint states. "Foppoli seized every opportunity to maintain his dominance and control over plaintiff, and convince and coerce her into believing that she 'wanted it' and his assaults were actually consensual acts."

The lawsuit also accuses Christopher Creek Winery, owned by Foppoli and his brother, Joe, of ignoring Foppoli's sexual misconduct and knowingly fostering "a pervasive and hostile environment that utterly disregarded the rights and safety of women," according to the record.

Reached Saturday, Joe Foppoli declined to comment.

Parties in the May lawsuit are due to appear in court September 20 for a case management conference, according to the court calendar.

Traci Carrillo, a Santa Rosa attorney who represents the seven women in the April complaint, said Saturday that she expects the new lawsuit "bolsters and corroborates" her clients' case.

Alongside the two Sonoma County civil lawsuits, the allegations have prompted criminal investigations.

In March, the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office handed its criminal probe to the state Attorney General's Office. There have been no updates in that case, an office spokesperson said earlier this month.

And on March 11, authorities in Palm Beach, Florida, released documents from an investigation there into a sexual assault allegation made by reality television star Farrah Abraham against Foppoli. Ultimately, the Palm Beach Police Department suspended its investigation due to lack of evidence.

"As far as I know everything has been thoroughly investigated at every level of the government that could possibly be involved. I have never been criminally charged with a single thing in my life," Foppoli said.

Coming forward to regain 'power'

The Montana woman's lawsuit represents the first time these specific accusations have surfaced. It also brings the number of women who have come forward with allegations against Foppoli to 14 since they were first reported in April 2021 in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Her client's parents learned about the allegations against Foppoli through news reports, Mallgrave said Saturday.

"They talked to their daughter about it, and she confirmed what was going on, and it was through her parents' support that she gained the strength to talk about it more and to seek legal representation to figure out ... her rights," the lawyer said.

The experiences alleged in the lawsuit are still negatively affecting her client, Mallgrave added.

"The full effects are probably yet to be seen because it is so fresh, if you will, because it is so recent, and she is definitely still healing and in recovery," she said. "But in the immediate time frame, it really affects one's view of reality ... when she can trust other individuals and when she can trust herself."

The case is so important, Mallgrave added, because "as a society in terms of addressing the problems of sexual assault, everyone really needs to be aware of how often and how these sexual assaults occur. She's coming forward because she wants to stop a serial predator. It's really that simple."

You can reach Staff Writer Emily Wilder at 707-521-5337 or emily.wilder@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @vv1lder.

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