An Alabama woman, Beverly Young Nelson, today accused Roy Moore of groping and assaulting her about 40 years ago when she was 16.

Nelson alleges the assault happened when Moore was a 30-something-year-old prosecutor in the Etowah County District Attorney's Office. Nelson said she met Moore while working as a waitress at the Old Hickory House, a restaurant off U.S. 431 in Gadsden. The city is about 50 miles northeast of Birmingham and has fewer than 40,000 residents.

During a brief appearance in his small hometown of Gallant in Etowah County late Monday, Moore denied the allegations.

"I never did what she said I did," Moore told reporters. "I don't even know the woman. I don't know anything about her."

Nelson and New York attorney Gloria Allred, speaking today at a press conference, called on the Senate Judiciary committee to investigate the allegations ahead of the Dec. 12 Alabama special Senate election. Moore, a Republican is running against Democrat Doug Jones.

Nelson said she was waiting for her boyfriend to pick her up from work one night when Moore offered to give her a ride home.

"I trusted Mr. Moore because he was a district attorney," Nelson said.

When Nelson got in Moore's car, she said he drove behind the restaurant and parked near a dumpster instead of taking her home. Nelson said Moore groped her and tried to force her head onto his crotch. Nelson says she yelled and tried to leave the car, but Moore locked the door.

"I was not going to allow him to force me to have sex with him," Nelson said. "I was terrified. I thought he was going to rape me. At some point, he gave up."

Nelson said before Moore opened the door -- at which point she either fell out or he pushed her out -- he told her: '"You're just a child and I am the District Attorney of Etowah County, and if you tell anyone about this, no one will ever believe you."'

Nelson said she had bruises where Moore grabbed her neck during the alleged assault and she covered them with makeup.

Nelson and Allred claimed Nelson told her sister about the incident two weeks later. Nelson told her mother about four years ago, and she told her husband before they got married 13 years ago, she claimed. Nelson's husband was at the press conference.

Nelson said the alleged attack happened just days after Moore signed her yearbook on Dec. 22, 1977. Nelson said she had been flattered when Moore asked to sign her Gadsden High School yearbook. The book, which was shown at the press conference by Allred, includes this message: "To a sweeter more beautiful girl, I could not say Merry Christmas." Allred says it's signed by Roy Moore, of the Etowah County District Attorney's Office.

Nelson said Moore was a regular customer of the restaurant and that he would sometimes pull her long red hair or comment on her appearance. The flirting began when Nelson was 15, she claimed.

"I did nothing to encourage this flirtatious behavior," Nelson said.

Allred said Nelson will voluntarily testify if the Senate Judiciary Committee will call a public hearing to investigate the allegations. Allred called for the committee to subpoena Moore.

Just before Nelson's press conference began in New York, Moore issued a statement calling the allegations a "witch hunt," AL.com's Paul Gattis reported. Read more about Moore's response here.

Click here to read AL.com's coverage of Roy Moore.

The news conference came after a Washington Post article published this past week detailing sexual allegations against Moore. The Post reported Moore had sexual or romantic encounters with four teenage girls when he was in his early 30s while working as an assistant district attorney in Gadsden. One of the girls, Leigh Corfman, was 14 and said Moore undressed her and touched her over her bra and underpants while guiding her hand to touch him over his underpants.

Moore, the state's former chief justice, is running against Jones for Alabama's Senate seat that was vacated when Jeff Sessions became U.S. Attorney General. The general election is Dec. 12.

"We applaud the courage of these women. Roy Moore will be held accountable by the people of Alabama for his actions," the Jones campaign later said in a statement.

Allred said the other women's disclosures gave Nelson the courage to come forward publicly.

Updated at 6:17 p.m. to include Moore's comments claiming he never met Nelson.