During Kavanaugh hearings, Dem senator alerted FBI to new allegation

In his letter to Mr. Wray, Mr. Coons told the F.B.I. director that several people had come to him with additional allegations. In particular, he asked Mr. Wray for “appropriate follow-up” with a former Yale classmate of Justice Kavanaugh’s who had information that might have buttressed a claim by another classmate, Deborah Ramirez. Ms. Ramirez had alleged that Justice Kavanaugh exposed himself to her during a drunken dormitory party in 1983, their freshman year. Justice Kavanaugh has vigorously denied all the allegations against him.

The bureau pledged to look into the Ramirez allegations, but Justice Kavanaugh’s detractors pointed to the Coons letter as evidence that her claims were given short shrift, and that corroborating witnesses were ignored. The F.B.I. declined to comment on Monday, but pointed to Mr. Wray’s testimony last year before Congress, where he defended the bureau’s handling of the supplemental investigation into Justice Kavanaugh, noting that it had been directed by the White House, which had asked for a narrow inquiry. Under standard protocol, the bureau responds to background investigation requests from the White House, not members of Congress.