SHARE: The Assembly’s impeachment investigation into Gov. Andrew Cuomo took a small step forward Wednesday, as Speaker Carl Heastie and Judiciary Committee Chair Charles Lavine announced they’ve hired a law firm to assist with the probe. But the announcement was met with almost immediate backlash because the firm, Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, has ties to Cuomo allies. The announcement also comes as Heastie reels from a leaked conference meeting in which some Assembly members suggested that he’s using the impeachment investigation to stall for time and potentially to protect Cuomo. Three lawyers from Davis Polk will take charge with the Judiciary Committee to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct, Cuomo’s handling of nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic and an alleged coverup of structural problems with the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. Greg Andres was notably part of then-special counsel Robert Mueller’s team investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and potential collusion with the Trump campaign. He prosecuted ex-Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort as part of that probe. Martine Beamon is a former federal prosecutor in New York and Angela Burgess leads the law firm’s White Collar Defense and Investigation Group. “Hiring Davis Polk will give the Committee the experience, independence and resources needed to handle this important investigation in a thorough and expeditious manner,” Heastie said in a statement, adding that he has “the utmost faith” that Lavine and the Judiciary Committee will conduct a “full and fair investigation.”