Fairfax took a softer tone in a new statement released Wednesday morning. Fairfax said Tyson never expressed “any discomfort or concern” during the sexual encounter or in the months that followed.

“I would like to encourage the media, my supporters, and others to treat both the woman who made this allegation and my family with respect for how painful this situation can be for everyone involved,” Fairfax said. “I wish her no harm or humiliation, nor do I seek to denigrate her or diminish her voice. But I cannot agree with a description of events that I know is not true.”

In her statement, Tyson said she met Fairfax at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston and realized they had a mutual friend. On July 28 of that year, Tyson said, Fairfax asked her to accompany him to his hotel room to get some papers. He then began kissing her, she said, and she “kissed him back.”

“What began as consensual kissing quickly turned into a sexual assault,” Tyson said.

Tyson said Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex on him by grabbing her by the neck as she “cried and gagged.”