Recently in Sexual Harassment Category

The Knicks center, Eddy Curry, who was sued for sexual harassment by his former driver, is considering filing a defamation suit against him in retaliation.
Curry was accused of racial discrimination and sexual harassment in a suit filed on Monday in the Southern District of New York, by his former driver, David Kuchinsky, who had worked for the NBA star for three years.
The lawsuit seeks $68,000 in unpaid wages and $25,000 in expenses that the Kuchinsky claims were not reimbursed, apart from $5 million in damages.
Allegedly, Curry made inappropriate sexual advances on Kuchinsky and exposed himself on two occasions. The lawsuit also claims that Curry referred to Kuchinsky in racially offensive and derogative terms and on one occasion, even pointed a loaded gun at his head.
Curry denied all of Kuchinsky's allegations on Monday night. Chicago based lawyer Kelly Saindon, who is currently representing Curry in the lawsuit claims that Kuchinsky filed the lawsuit because he was fired in October without any notice.
As a result of the sexual harassment lawsuit, Curry may sue Kuchinsky for defamation of character. Saindon stated that she will also file a motion to dismiss Kuchinsky's lawsuit on the basis that it goes against his employment contract according to which any workplace disputes would be resolved before the American Arbitration Association in Chicago.
To read more about the case click here.

Luna Community College, New Mexico has become embroiled in a sexual harassment controversy with the U.S. Department of Justice suing the institution for doing little to halt the sexual harassment of a subordinate employee by the president of the institution.
The lawsuit was filed in Albuquerque and seeks unspecified damages on behalf of the victim, Charlene Ortiz-Cordova. The suit was filed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
At the time of the alleged harassment, Ortiz-Cordova was academic director of the institute. During her tenure at the college, she was subjected to unwanted sexual contact, gestures and comments by the college president at that time, Leroy Sanchez. His behavior towards Ortiz-Cordova created a hostile working environment for her.
As per her lawsuit the plaintiff's repeated complaints to her immediate superiors went unheeded. After a year of inaction, her complaint finally reached the human resource department of the college after which Sanchez was instructed to avoid contacting Ortiz-Cordova. However, nothing was done to discipline Sanchez or to see that the department's order was implemented.
In 2006, Ortiz-Cordova left her job and filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission which investigated and verified the allegations. The case was then transferred to the Justice Department after repeated attempts to negotiate with Sanchez failed.
To read more about the case click here.

Parents of a special education student who formerly studied at Liberty Elementary School, Liberty, Indiana have filed an official notice of their intent to sue the Union County-College Corner Joint School District and the East Central Special Services over the care and treatment of their child.
The family is seeking $3 million in damages for each alleged incident of abuse, neglect and battery that their child had to face at the school. Their charges include battery, negligent supervision, abuse, negligent infliction of emotional distress, intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation and gross negligence.
The school was notified of the family's intent to sue on October 20, 2008. This notification is a prerequisite in Indiana. A public entity must be notified of a potential lawsuit against it before a civil lawsuit can be filed.
The child began attending the school in August last year. However, the child was soon removed from the school on a physician's advice for safety reasons. The child had become very upset about attending school and would cry every time upon arriving there.
To read about the details of the case click here.

The Deputy Chief of Police of Oakland, California, one of the department's highest ranking officers, has been accused of sexually harassing a female sergeant. The complaint, which was initially filed with the department's Internal Affairs Division, was filed after the sergeant became uncomfortable when Jeff Loman discussed meeting her for dinner to talk about a possible promotion (the sergeant was due to be promoted to the rank of lieutenant).
The lawsuit against Loman comes while he is also undergoing a probe in the department's handling of the investigation into journalist Chauncey Bailey's killing in August 2007.    
To read more about the case click here.

The state of Michigan may end up paying millions of dollars in damages to inmates of its correctional facilities, for the sexual abuse they faced while serving their prison terms.
The current scenario comes as no surprise to human rights groups who have been crying themselves hoarse for several years now, over the condition of female inmates in prison. They have alleged that prison guard were routinely groping, molesting and raping female inmates.
The class-action lawsuit was first filed in 1996. It may now end up costing the state hundreds of millions of taxpayer's dollars in damages. So far, 18 women have testified against the Michigan Department of Corrections. They have received $50 million in damages. Several more are yet to testify. The class-action lawsuit now has more than 500 inmates participating in it.
In its defense, the state has claimed that it did not take any action earlier because none of the inmates reported the alleged assaults. They also said that in any case, they found it hard to give credibility to the testimony of convicted criminals.
To read more about the case click here.

The only female truck driver for the sanitation department in Atlantic City has filed a lawsuit against the city claiming that the city failed to protect her from the sexual harassment meted out to her by her supervisors.
Lisa Fundberg-Carr who has been a truck driver for the city since 2006, alleges that her supervisor, Melvin Jones, 'pinned her against a wall and tried to put his tongue down her throat'. She reported the incident, which took place in March or April 2006, to Barbara Camper, the city's equal opportunity employment officer at that time but no action was taken.
Fundberg-Carr also claims that her co-worker, Brian Williams, passed sexually offensive comments about her while they were both in training together such as 'how does it feel between your legs'. Her lawsuit also alleges that Williams also sent her obscene photos of himself to her celphone.
Again she claims that she reported the incident but nothing was done. All the while Williams continued to harass her by calling her 'bitch' and yelling in her face.
Her lawsuit filed on December 15 also named Jones, Williams, Herman Baskerville, Camper, David Callaway and former assistant city solicitor John Hegarty as defendants.
Fundberg-Carr is being represented by David Castellani of Northfield. In her lawsuit she alleges that she suffered 'extreme emotional distress, mental anguish, embaressment, humiliation, loss of past and future wages, physical injury and other damages' and that Atlantic City failed to enforce policies relating to sexual harassment at the workplace. She is seeking punitive damages, legal fees and other costs associated with filing the lawsuit.

A nurse at the Darlington County Detention Center, South Carolina, has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against the county sheriff, his chief deputy and the county's jail director.
Roberta O'Steen filed her complaint in federal court Florence on December 19. In her lawsuit, O'Steen alleges that in the summer of 2007 Denis Carter, the detention center director, sexually harassed her by using vulgar sexual language with her and ordering her to perform massages. She claims that he also offered her money to see her breasts and to spend the night with him.
O'Steen complained about Carter's behavior to the county's human resources office administrator Phyllis Griffitts and to Darlington Sheriff Glenn Campbell. However, no action was taken.
After her complaint, O'Steen found that Carter stopped communicating with her about work related issues. He created a hostile work environment for her, forcing her termination from employment at the jail.
O'Steen later complained to the Darlington deputy sheriff, Tom Gainey about the harassment. He chided her for not reporting the harassment sooner and told her she would be written up for the delay. According to the plaintiff's document the deputy sheriff went on to accuse her of liking the behavior of her supervisor.
In her federal complaint, O'Steen alleges that she suffered irreparable injury and monetary damage as a result of the harassment.
O'Steen is being represented by Florence attorney Phoebe A. Clark of the Wukela Law Firm.

A postal worker of the Big Ben Post Office in Clarksburg, West Virginia, has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Postal Service and the U.S. Postmaster General John Potter amongst others for creating a hostile work environment for her.
Kathryn E. Munson alleges that she suffered discrimination, infliction of emotional distress and mental anguish because she filed a sexual harassment complaint in response to activities by her superiors that had created a hostile working environment for her.
Her suit also names as defendants, former Big Ben Postmaster Richard Dobson and former carrier William McCray.
As per the lawsuit, Munson was relieved of her duties in December 2007. She alleges that she was fired in retaliation for reporting that Dobson and McCray had violated postal procedures by making sexually explicit statements to postal customers and to her.
Her lawsuit further alleges that after she filed the report against her seniors, their behavior took a turn for the worse. They used sexually offensive language against customers. During one particular incident McCray told customers that he didn't wear underwear in the summer and that he could still 'get his up.'
Munson claims that no action was taken against McCray or Dobson by the U.S. Postal service for which she is holding them responsible.
To read the whole article click here.

Lord of the Dance, Michael Flatley, who was falsely accused of rape by a former exotic dancer, has been vindicated. A Cook County Judge ordered the dancer to cooperate with Flatley's lawyers as they attempted to recover $11 million in damages from her.

Tyna Marie Robertson attempted to extort $30 million from the dancer alleging that he had sexually assaulted her in a Las Vegas hotel in 2002. Robertson seems to be quite familiar with sexual harassment lawsuits. She has filed a similar suit against a Chicago based doctor as well as a paternity suit against the American football star, Brian Urlacher.

 

Robertson had to be arrested at her home in an affluent suburb of Chicago after she failed to appear for a court date. The judge has issued her a warning saying that if she misses further court dates, he would have to put her in jail for six months, no questions asked.

On her part, Robertson claimed that she had not received any notice of the hearing.

Mr Flatley, a world renowned Riverdance star, was in Las Vegas in 2002 to promote the acquisition of his 'Lord of the Dance' show by the Venetian Casino. That's where he met Robertson. The star claims that his relationship with the dancer on the night of October 19 was entirely voluntary and consensual.

To read more click here.

A female park ranger has alleged that the California Department of Parks and Recreation harassed her for being a lesbian.
In her lawsuit against the department, Jennifer Donovan claims that people in her workplace often posted vulgar drawings and left women's underwear and sex toys in the locker room. She also claims that her superiors discriminated against her, passing her over for promotions in favor of rangers with less experience.
Donovan worked for six years at San Onofre and San Clemente state beaches.
She is seeking an unspecified amount in damages.     

Officials of Western State Hospital, Tacoma, Washington, are embroiled in yet another sexual harassment scandal. Five years ago they made a million dollar legal payout and had to fire a notorious employee and a CEO. AN independent investigation was launched to see if hospital authorities were failing to address the chronic sexual harassment between co-workers.
This year, the sexual harassment charge has come back to haunt the hospital with three lawsuits being filed against them, with a fourth in the process of being filed.
The CEO who replaced the earlier CEO has been fired and three hospital employees accused of harassment have been fired.
To read more about the case click here.

A Blount County, Alabama, Sheriff, who was accused of sexual misconduct with his deputy, decided to resign his post. Danny Morton was accused of taking his deputy for a drive in his county issued truck, plying her with alcohol and then fondling her against her will.
Special prosecutor Tom Sorrells who is investigating this case made a deal with the Sherrif, according to which the Sherrif had to resign his post. In turn, Sorrell promised not to refer charges against Morton to a grand jury.
Sorrell, who has been carrying out an investigation into the charges against the Sherrif is doing so on behalf of the Alabama Bureau of Investigation.
Adam Morel, who is representing the deputy stated that his client was happy with the outcome of the case.
This particular settlement represents the criminal investigation and has no influence on the civil cases against Morton.
To read more click here.

A sexual abuse and harassment lawsuit has been filed against the Division of Corrections for the state of West Virginia, for the sexual abuse and harassment that an inmate underwent while incarcerated at the Anthony Correctional Center.
Sexually abused by her supervisor at the prison, ex- inmate Lola Rakes filed the lawsuit on October 23 in which she has named the DOC, Franklin Rush, the supervisor and an associate warden, amongst others, as the defendants.
Rakes alleges that she suffered serious injury, invasion of privacy, humiliation, mental anguish and the loss of her ability to enjoy life as a result of the abuse.
Rakes is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for her suffering and is also seeking to see that the Correction facility starts a program to train its employees on how to prevent sexual harassment.
To read the whole article click here.

A recent legal battle against the Hilton Hotels, for the wrongful dismissal of a hotel staffer, Deborah Smit, after she informed her HR department of catching top executives of the hotel in a sexual orgy, may get more interesting with co-workers involved in the orgy suing each other. 
April Bezdichek alleges that James M. Vennewitz, 38, who was the hotel beverage manager at the time of the incident, invited her to the evening of group sex. She is suing Vennewitz as well as the company on eight counts, including sexual harassment, assault, invasion of privacy etc.
Bezdichek alleges that she was unwittingly lured into meeting Vennewitz on the night the incident occurred as a result of which she was sexually abused. After she complained she was not called for shifts and hence had to resign.
Smith was the first to file a lawsuit against Minneapolis Hilton Hotel. After she reported the incident to the HR department she was no longer called in for shifts and had to resign from her work.
To read the complete details of the case and to read the full pdf with all the case information click here.

The decision by University of Georgia's (UGA) administrators to uphold a sexual harassment complaint against one of their employees may have been wrong.
U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Christopher Hagy stated that there was no substantial evidence against the defendant.
Journalism college dean, John Soloski was accused by his colleague, Jane Jones Kendall, in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication of passing comments about her appearance that made her uncomfortable. In 2005, the UGA's Office of Legal Affairs found Soloski to be guilty of violating the university's policy of Non-Discrimination and Anti- Harassment.
Soloski's comments to Kendall were "That is a nice dress. It really shows off your assets," and "You have brown eyes. I don't believe I've ever noticed that before. What colour are my eyes?" Judge Hagy stated that these statements fall far short of what the law says is sexual harassment.
UGA President Michael Adams has come under heavy criticism for his decision. Soloski's case is often compared with that of Keith Parker who massaged a female student's feet and told her that she looked like she was the type of girl who liked to have fun. The UGA Office of Legal Affairs, acting on a complaint by the student, did not feel that Parker's behaviour was a violation of the UGA harassment policy. Parker's case seems to highlight the fact that the administration of the UGA made an arbitrary and uninformed decision.
To read the complete details of the case click here.

A girl, identified as A.D in her lawsuit, has alleged that the district she lives in failed to protect her from the abuses she faced from her ex-boyfriend. The former Hillsborough High School student says that the boy harassed and assaulted her between December 2006 and August 2007 on school grounds. The lawsuit filed in state Superior Court of Somerville, alleges that the offences by the ex included physical and verbal assaults of a violent and sexual nature.
Attorney Christopher Westrick who is representing the girl stated that the harassment she faced occurred when she was just 17 years old. The boy sent text messages of a sexual nature and disseminated nude pictures of her while she was in high school.
The girl's attorney further stated that his client repeatedly complained to school officials and even complained to a police officer who was stationed at the high school. She also informed the vice principal and the sexual harassment counselor. Now she is suing the district for the violation of the state law against discrimination for allowing a gender bias.
To read all the details of the case read the original article here.

A woman of the Sikh religious sect from India who allegedly suffered racial, religious and sexual harassment at her work place won a civil case against her former employers recently. After a three year legal battle Sukhbir Kaur, reached a settlement agreement with her former employers which also included a clause that forced them to change their employment policies.
The National Wholesale Liquidators (NWL) agreed to make changes to their employment policies that would rid the company of discrimination and pay monetary damages to Kaur and eight other victims of harassment worth $255,000.
Kaur alleged that her manager harassed her because she was a Sikh, a woman and an Indian. He told her on several occasions to remover her traditional turban because she would 'look sexier' without it.

A professor of Sussex County Community College is suing her institution claiming that she was sexually harassed and then denied a promotion and wrongfully dismissed by a superior when she refused his advances.
Darla Silverman is seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages from the college. Silverman has named the college, its president, Constance Mierendorf, vice president, Harry Damato and associate professor of psychology, Richard Linden as defendants in her lawsuit.
Hired by the Newton school as an assistant professor of psychology in 2000, Silverman alleges that in the first two years of her appointment, Linden made several inappropriate advances to her. As she was not tenured yet and he was the only other member of the department who could have a say in whether she could get tenure, she did not confront him. She alerted Damato instead, who just told her to be patient with Linden.
In 2002, Silverman and Linden attended a conference together in Catskills during which they were given adjoining hotel rooms. At one point Linden entered her room and tried to forcibly hug and kiss her while telling her that he was in love with her. Silverman spurned his advances after which his behaviour towards her became very negative. He harassed her and humiliated her in front of students and colleagues.
Two of her colleagues who witnessed Linden's behaviour wrote a letter to the human resources department of the college in 2004. The former vice president dismissed the allegation and directed the pair to have minimal contact.
The injustice continued when in 2006 Silverman was passed over for a post that she was obviously qualified for. Later the person they hired quit the job owing to an illness after his first day. Silverman was then given the post but her designation was altered and she received less pay. She was classified as an executive assistant to the vice president even though her duties were the same as those of a dean. She took the job hoping to be promoted in 6 months to a year.
In 2007, Mierendorf became SCCC president but did not make Silverman a dean. In April when she resigned her post, the college made her former position a dean and hired a colleague of Mierendorf from Raritan Valley Community College in Somerset County.

Eight female former prisoners of the Crane Correctional Facility were awarded $8.45 million in damages for the rape and sexual harassment they suffered in the 90s by guards at the facility in Coldwater, Michigan.
This is the second multimillion dollar verdict against the Michigan Department of Corrections in a huge civil case alleging widespread abuse in Michigan prisons.
The case is being heard in batches in front of Washtenaw Circuit Judge Timothy Connors, since more than 500 female prisoners have alleged that they were sexually abused by prison guards in the 90s.
The first verdict was handed out in February when 10 current and former prisoners were awarded $15.4 million in damages for sexual abuse by corrections officers at Scott Correctional Facility in Plymoth.
Deborah LaBelle, the lead attorney for the case stated that these prisoners had been deeply damaged by the hands of the state.
A third trial will be held in 2009 against Western Wayne Correctional Facility which was closed in 2004.
The verdict from the first trial is being appealed.

Kansas University basketball player, Sherron Collins can now heave a sigh of relief after a lawsuit filed against him was dropped. Jessica Brown, 36, alleged that Collins exposed himself and rubbed against her while they were travelling together in an elevator at Jayhawker Towers on the KU campus where she worked. She was seeking more than $75,000 in damages for mental and physical problems.
Brown dropped her case recently on the condition that Collins drop his counterclaim against her, accusing her of defamation.
Throughout the ordeal, Collins maintained that he was innocent.
Douglas County District attorney declined to file criminal charges against Collins as Brown had failed to provide sufficient evidence to support her claim.

A Missouri Court of Appeals in Kansas City recently exchanged it's own punitive reward amount for one determined by a trial judge, setting a precedent under the Missouri Human Rights Act by awarding a plaintiff $3.75 million in punitive damages.
Federal anti-discrimination laws restrict damages against large companies at $300,000 but the Missouri Human Rights Act did not do so in this case. Since the lawsuit began however, Missouri Legislature has limited punitive damages to $500,000 or five times the amount of compensatory damages, whichever is greater.
Auto parts supplier TNT Logistics of North America Inc was asked to pay $6.5 million in punitive damages to their former employee Kendra Lynn in 2006 by a Jackson County Jury. A judge later ruled that, that amount was excessive and reduced it to $450,000.
TNT argued to reduce that amount to $250,000. The appeals court ruling on Friday said $6.75 million was excessive but that $450,000 in itself was not sufficient. Thus they settled on an amount of $3.75 million noting that the company did not try to correct the actions of its errant supervisor creating a hostile work environment for Lynn. The plaintiff has to accept the decision in three days. Kirk D. Holman, who represents Lynn stated that he was happy with the decision.
In her 2004 lawsuit Lynn alleged that her shift supervisor, Michael Gill, repeatedly made vulgar and sexually graphic comments to her. Her complaints to her superiors about this went unheeded and she was placed on a 2 a.m. shift instead. After working at TNT as an assembly line scanner for 16 months and earning positive evaluations, Lynn was fired in January 2004.
Evidence showed that TNT never interviewed or disciplined Gill that the company had even tried to conceal its handling of Lynn's complaints.
Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com

 

Accused of sexual harassment, Todd Shemarya, agent to Hollywood's most talked about couple, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie also allegedly, insulted his clients, made jokes about their sexual habits and kept some of the gifts intended for them.

Heather Devlin, Shemarya's former assistant claims that the agent subjected her to an incessant barrage of sexual, racist and religious comments and often walked around his office in the buff, exposing himself to the staff in his office. She also claims that the agent had a habit of showing staff an August 1997 issue of Playgirl magazine which contained nude pictures of his client Brad Pitt, so that he could ridicule the size of Pitt's penis.

The sexual harassment and wrongful dismissal claim also states that Shemarya gave preferential treatment to gay employees who were willing to sleep with him. Devlin states that she was fired because she refused to help the agent acquire further gifts that were meant for the actors and also because she had, had a fight with Shemarya's boyfriend at the time.

Shemarya has denied all of Devlin's claims and has called her a disgruntled employee who he fired a year ago.

Represented by lawyer Keith Fink, famous for bringing wrongful dismissal cases against celebrities, Devlin is stated to be seeking unlimited damages.

Information from The Independent website.

Pic courtesy Kalley Z from flickr.com

Earlier this year a sexual harassment lawsuit was filed against Dov Charney, the founder and chief executive of fashion giant, American Apparel, by a former employee.
Mary Nelson alleged that Charney created a hostile work environment by appearing in his underwear during several meetings with her including one at his home and by using sexually explicit language. Nelson's lawsuit brings Charney's tally up to four. He has doggedly maintained his innocence through all four trials.
More recently it was revealed that American Apparel Inc. agreed to pay Nelson $1.3 million in damages on one condition. She was to keep the settlement a secret and continue participating in the arbitration proceeding which would have a preordained outcome allowing Charney to be proved innocent. The plaintiff however, refused to agree to the terms of the settlement.
To read the whole article subscribe to The Wall Street Journal's website by clicking here.

Pic courtesy legalizeLA from flickr.com

An employee of the Onancock municipality has filed a lawsuit against the town, the Town Council and the Mayor, Bruce Paone, amongst others for alleged sexual harassment, assault and abuse over a period of several years.
Steven Key seeks $17.4 million in compensatory damage and another $1 million in punitive damages in the lawsuit filed in Accomack Circuit Court.
While Key worked at the town as a laborer, he alleges he was verbally and physically abused by the town manager Susan Scott as well as two employees Dewey Bordstrom and Kevin Meindorf whom he has also named as defendants in the lawsuit.
The two employees taunted Key by calling him a homosexual and on several occasions they even attempted to sexually abuse him. The town manager knew about the abuse but failed to punish Bordstrom and Meindorf. In fact, the lawsuit alleges that Scott confronted Key and demanded to know if he had ever had sexual intercourse with a female. When he replied in the negative she joined Bordstrom and Meindorf in verbally and physically abusing Key.
Key finally resigned his job in 2007 and afterward filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). He filed his lawsuit on 16 October this year.

 

  A civil lawsuit was filed against a substitute teacher and her husband in Pierce County Wisconsin, for the sexual harassment of a thirteen year old boy of Prescott Middle School. The lawsuit asks for compensatory and punitive damages from Ann and Wade J. Knopf for sexual abuse, assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress on the boy.
Although the husband was not involved in actually committing the offence, according to the lawsuit, he had full knowledge about what was going on in his household and did not do anything to put a stop to it. Further, the suit states that Knopf had been diagnosed and treated for mental illness in the past, which her husband was aware of.
According to the complaint, on 1 January and 18 May 2007, and on several other occasions, Knopf, 38, engaged in phone conversations, letters and face- to- face conversations with the boy.
In July, Ann Knopf pleaded guilty to second degree sexual assault of a minor and was sentenced to nine months in prison. A man assaulting a minor girl would have received a much more severe punishment so why this leniency with Ann Knopf?

Pic courtesy Txspiked from flickr.com

This is an interesting case of a Roman Catholic priest, found guilty of molesting 3 youths and held liable for civil damages, in a law suit filed by these youths. The priest, Father McCutcheon is at fault, as he has denied an order to give psychologists,  his permission to testify about the sessions. However the priest’s attorneys argued that the defendant had the privilege of maintaining the privacy of the counseling sessions.
Contrary to this,  the priest had waived the privilege as he tried to defend himself , stating that his actions were the outcome of a mental illness called pedophilia-desire for children.

Father McCutcheon was originally sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment for sexual assault, but,  later his sentence was reduced to a probation, where
he was required to spend a year in a church run by the center in New Mexico.

The jury will also decide what, if anything, Father McCutcheon has pay in punitive and compensatory damages.

Kenneth Deshun Woods a former Galveston police officer, currently serving 40 years in prison is accused of raping and violating the civil rights of Jeanna Sue Bouras a Dickinson native.
Besides Woods the Galveston Police Department are co-defendants in this case and Bouras has filed the suit before the Southern District of Texas. Since inception the lawsuit has been updated about 10 times with U.S. District Court Judge Vanessa D.Gilmore which states that Bouras was alone on Galveston's East Beach when Woods, ordered her to get inside the police car after which Ms. Bouras was taken to a secluded area of the beach and sexually assaulted her.

Bouras claims she was coerced into committing several sexual acts and left abandoned on the beach. Bouras then informed her boyfriend of the situation and subsequently filed a complaint at Galveston.

An investigation ensued in which Woods was successfully tried,  and found guilty of the aggravated assault and sexual harassment.
Woods was suspended from his job and peace officer license and is incarcerated in the Texas Department of Corrections' Beto Unit in Palestine.

According to the law suit Bouras states the incident has shattered her to death.
The city is blamed for its "failure to properly train, discipline, investigate or otherwise control its employee Woods."

The police department is really ashamed for "implementing a policy of ignoring all the complaints of the plaintiff.
Bouras, who is represented by Houston attorney Joseph W. Walker, seeks punitive and exemplary damages and a jury trial.

 

Alexandria Lipton, 25, and Kristen McRedmond, 27, filed a lawsuit in New York Supreme Court against the Sutton Place Bar and Restaurant, accusing their former bosses of ordering female employees to be weighed as part of a scheme to keep track of their weight.

The two women claim they were humiliated and sexually harassed by their boss, who kept tabs on waitresses' poundage by ordering some of them onto a scale in the restaurant's office.

The two ex-employees are represented by attorney Rosemarie Arnold, who said Redmond physically resisted when a beefy manager tried to pick her up to get her on the scale while another manager looked on.

Arnold said no men were subjected to being weighed; only female workers were singled out for the weigh-ins.

The lawsuit seeks $15 million for each of 11 counts.

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Caren Sharpe of Crestwood had sued the St. Louis College District for sexual harassment she suffered in an incident in which a campus police officer aimed an unloaded gun at her.

A jury has awarded $850,000 to Sharpe - $400,000 in compensatory damages for emotional distress and $450,000 in punitive damages.

In February 2004, Sharpe was working as a secretary for the police chief at the Meramec campus in Kirkwood when an officer whom, she said, had sexually harassed her in the past pointed a handgun at her and said, "if I can't have you, no one can," and pulled the trigger. There were no bullets in the gun. The officer, who was later fired, testified the incident was a joke. Sharpe said she took it seriously.

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Californian Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has settled a libel lawsuit with former late-night British TV personality Anna Richardson, who claimed she was groped by the Hollywood actor during a 2000 interview and later defamed by his aides during his 2003 campaign for governor.

"The parties are content to put this matter behind them and are pleased that this legal dispute has now been settled," said a two-sentence statement issued jointly in London on Friday by lawyers for Schwarzenegger and Richardson.

No details were released. The statement said Richardson and the three people she sued - the governor and two top aides, Sean Walsh and publicist Sheryl Main - reached a settlement "to all parties' satisfaction."

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Three former students of Humphrey Public School in Parry Sound, Ontario, filed a lawsuit against Kenneth Bull and the Near North District School Board (NNDSB), for sexual assaults by Bull, a convicted sexual offender who was their teacher in Grade 6.

The three former students, Eric Jalonen, Jeff Masson and Mike Tepfenhart each filed a $4.5 million lawsuit seeking $500,000 for non-pecuniary damages, such as pain and suffering; $2 million for economic loss, both past and future; $250,000 for special damages, such as medical expenses; $250,000 for mental distress; $500,000 aggravated damages; and $1 million against the NNDSB for punitive damages.

In 1978, a Parry Sound judge found Mr. Bull guilty of five counts of indecent assault against males.

Although it’s been 28 years since Mr. Bull’s criminal conviction, the men said they are suing him to make sure that other possible victims don’t feel that they are alone or have to live in fear anymore, Mr. Jalonen said.

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Former West Side High School student, Raymond Little believes he contracted HIV after being seduced by his band teacher. Little missed the deadline for initiating legal proceedings, but the state appeals court ruled that he can still sue the Newark school district.

Citing "extraordinary circumstances," the state appeals court ruled that Raymond Little can sue the Newark school district, even though he missed the legal deadline, because he was devastated by his medical diagnosis and ignorant of the legal requirements of filing a lawsuit.

Little had complained that the teacher Hassan Vann attempted to seduce him when he was a freshman. He said he told a guidance counselor, the school social worker and the principal that the teacher groped him, and asked to be transferred out of Vann's class, but no action was taken. This account was later corroborated by the guidance counselor and the social worker.

Two years later, when Little was a junior, Vann invited him to an apartment where he gave him alcohol and "weed,", and the two allegedly had sex regularly after that. In May 2005, nine months after he graduated, Little tested positive for the AIDS virus.

Little then reported his illness and his past encounters with the teacher to the Newark school board, who notified the police. Little had three months to begin legal proceedings against the school district. A Superior Court judge extended the deadline, but the school district appealed.

The appellate court agreed with the lower court that there were "extraordinary circumstances" and Little should be allowed extra time to file suit.

"(Raymond Little) was two months short of his nineteenth birthday when he learned that he had been injured as a consequence of his teacher's conduct," the court ruling states. "The unexpected news was that he had a condition that not only can lead to death but also carries a stigma."

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A sexual harassment lawsuit brought against James Brown by his former publicist, Jacque Hollander was dismissed by the 7th US Circuit Court Of Appeals in Chicago.

The three judges upheld a previous ruling that Hollander's legal action contravened the statute of limitations - as she launched her legal action in January 2005, claiming that Brown raped her at gunpoint in 1988.

Hollander had claimed that a doctor had diagnosed that a thyroid condition she developed was caused by the rape, thereby bypassing the two-year statute of limitations. But the judges ruled that she knew about her injuries immediately.

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Toyota Motor North America Inc. has announced that it has settled a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by a female employee. The terms of settlement could not be released because of mutual agreement to keep them confidential.

The employee, Sayaka Kobayashi, 42, had sought $190 million in damages in the suit filed with the New York State Supreme Court against her former boss, Hideaki Otaka, as well the company's North American unit and its Japanese parent.

Otaka has since stepped down as the president and chief executive of Toyota's U.S. unit. Otaka has said he is innocent.

Both sides have released a joint statement in which they said they were "pleased" to have reached a mutually satisfactory settlement.

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News Corp.'s Fox News Network has paid $225,000 to settle a sex discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The commission filed the suit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, on behalf of four women who were subjected to a sexually hostile workplace.

The lawsuit claimed that Fox Vice President Joe Chillemi harassed female employees  and subjected them to less favorable treatment than males.

According to the suit, female workers were faced with obscenities and vulgarities used in describing women or their body parts, including derogatory comments about pregnant women, were cursed at and denigrated and were generally treated in a demeaning manner.

Under the consent decree submitted Monday, Fox will maintain a revised anti-discrimination policy, train employees and managers on federal law prohibiting discrimination, and post a remedial notice and the EEOC poster required by federal law.

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A Korean woman is suing the Department of Homeland Security for $ 5 million, for the sexual assault that she suffered during a citizenship interview.

The woman claims that Officer Kelvin Renard Owens asked her during a June 2004 interview "If I let you pass, what are you going to give me?" He then bodily assaulted her and asked her to meet him outside the building to find out whether she had passed the test.

Owens pleaded guilty in federal court to sexual assault in March 2005. A judge ordered him to spend weekends in prison for six months. The judge also put him on probation for five years and fined him.

A lawyer for the U-S Citizenship and Immigration Service denied any liability in an April letter to the woman's lawyer, saying Owens was not acting within the course or scope of his job.

Recent lawsuits and reports indicate that teenagers on summer jobs often face sexual harassment, and most don't know what they can do to protect themselves.

According to a 2000 report by the U.S. Department of Labor, an estimated 4 million young people between ages 15 to 17 work during the summer, and nearly 3 million teens work during or after school. Since 2001, the first year the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission  began tracking teen cases, the agency has filed more than 100 discrimination lawsuits on behalf of teens, most alleging sexual harassment.

These problems have come into sharper focus with the recent settlement of $ 180,000 that Steak 'n Shake agreed to pay Amanda Nichols. She was 17 when she quit work at the restaurant in Ballwin in 2002, after facing unwanted advances and touching by a male co-worker. Her managers ignored her complaints, and later made her clean floorboards with a toothbrush, she said.

A highly publicised case earlier involved the harassment faced by teenagers while employed at a Burger King in Peerless Park. Burger King agreed to a settlement of $400,000   in 2004. The restaurant manager repeatedly made vulgar comments, groped the young women and demanded sex. The teenagers, six of whom were high school students, complained to assistant managers and a district manager, but no one took action to stop the harassment, the EEOC said.

Now the EEOC, former victims, and relatives of victims are advising young people as to how they can protect themselves when faced with situations like these:

1. Speak up.
2. Know that the EEOC is there to help in such cases.
3. Confide in family members.
4. Parents are advised to know the names of managers, and have a copy of the employee handbook.
5. Victims can write a short letter to the harasser, with specific complaints. This is likely to be taken seriously.

In addition to giving teenagers legal support, the EEOC  has also forced companies to hold training on the issue. The consent decree in the Burger King case, for example, said franchise owners must train managers about sexual harassment, distribute a new sexual harassment policy to all workers and prominently display an 800 number that workers can use to report harassment.

Read the news report

See "Sexual Harassment: What Teens Should Know", a book by Carol Rust Nash.

Read EEOC's Tips to Companies That Employ Teens

A former Marshall University cheerleader has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit naming the university’s Board of Governors, the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and Marshall’s cheerleading coach as defendants.

The plaintiff, represented by lawyer Mary Downey and identified only as “K.C.” in the suit, was invited to join Marshall’s cheerleading squad in April 2005 and was awarded a scholarship. She alleges that “she was subjected to a pervasive environment of sexual harassment, abuse and discrimination” including sexual slurs and inappropriate groping from male cheerleaders.

The suit claims that the plaintiff has suffered “severe emotional distress” and “will continue to need psychological and medical care as a direct result of her treatment by defendants.”

Among abuse alleged in the suit was male cheerleaders routinely “exposing their genitalia” and threatening “female members with violence and physical harm, such as dropping them during routines.”

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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has announced that Jones Apparel Group Inc. has settled a sexual harassment suit for $600,000.  This settlement resolves a 2004 government class- action lawsuit against Jones, parent company of Nine West shoes and a maker of jeans, suits and sportswear. The lawsuit accused two vice presidents of soliciting sex from female co-workers, groping them and making disparaging remarks about Latino women.

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Eight women have sued their employer, American Building Maintenance Industries, alleging sexual harassment by their supervisors. The plaintiffs, who clean commercial buildings at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and  other Twin Cities locations,  complain that their immediate supervisors demanded sex, fondled them and, in one case, coerced a worker into having sex.  They also say that complaints to their supervisor's boss were either ignored or they were retaliated against.
All the plaintiffs are Latina and Spanish speakers, and allege that their supervisors took advantage of their limited knowledge of English. They are now seeking unspecified monetary damages and class action status for their lawsuit.

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A Jury awarded $ 1.7 million in damages to Janet Orlando, who was spanked in front of co-workers two years ago while employed at Alarm One Inc. The company argued that this was a “camaraderie building exercise” that pitted sales teams against each other. The winners threw pies at the losers, fed them baby food, made them wear diapers and spanked their bottoms. The jury ruled that Ms Orlando was subjected to sexual harassment and sexual battery, and awarded $ 1.2 million in punitive damages, in addition to $ 500,000 for economic loss, medical costs, emotional distress, pain and suffering.

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