Del. Dan Helmer, D-Fairfax, is hitting back. Months after facing sexual assault allegations that surfaced just days before his congressional primary, Helmer has filed a $15 million defamation lawsuit, claiming the accusations were politically motivated and knowingly false.
Helmer, who came in second in a crowded nomination contest to represent Virginia’s 10th District last June, was accused of groping a woman six years ago — allegations first reported by NOTUS and linked to members of the Loudoun County Democratic Committee (LCDC). The report suggested that the claims led the local party to implement a sexual harassment policy.
At the time, Helmer dismissed the allegations as “baseless” and “with no specific details.”
“They have been made for the first time a week before an election by people who have endorsed my opponents,” Helmer told NOTUS last summer. “I’m proud of my record standing up against harassment.”
Now, Helmer is taking legal action. His suit names Lissa Savaglio, the former Loudoun County Democrat Committee chair, as the woman referenced in last summer’s allegations.
Also named in the suit are Avram Fechter, a former LCDC member, lawyer Charles King, who represented Savaglio, and two unnamed defendants listed as John and Jane Doe — all of whom Helmer claims conspired to harm his reputation.
The suit accuses the defendants of publishing “known falsehoods” about Helmer for a mix of “personal, political and financial motivations.”
It claims that in early May 2024, Savaglio reached out to Helmer to warn him that a “grassroots activist” had asked her about rumors of sexual misconduct involving the two. According to the suit, she gave no further details but allegedly admitted the rumors weren’t true, likening them “typical Republican tactics.”
As evidence, the lawsuit includes a screenshot of text messages purportedly between Helmer and Savaglio, as well as an image of Savaglio at a different event on the night of the alleged incident — suggesting that she wasn’t with Helmer when the misconduct allegedly took place.
The suit also alleges that Fechter, who publicly backed Savaglio’s claims, contributed to a political action committee that funded attack ads against Helmer over the accusations.
Additionally, it points out that both Fechter and Savaglio had supported a state Senate candidate who could have benefited politically if Helmer’s primary rival, Suhas Subramanyam, had won the congressional seat.
A staff member for Helmer declined to comment on the pending litigation, which was filed in Fairfax County Circuit Court. The campaign also did not provide further details about the unnamed individuals listed in the lawsuit.
The other defendants in the suit did not respond for comment by the time of this publication.
With Helmer now taking the battle to court, the fight over these allegations – and their political fallout — is far from over.
