The default judgment found Pace Transport, Inc. to have violated the Missouri Human Rights Act and Missouri’s Workers’ Compensation Retaliation laws.

Defendant Orlando Pace employed our client from approximately October 2015 to April 2018. The default judgment found that Pace Transport, Inc. terminated our client’s employment due to her sex (female), her disability due to her on-the-job injury, her complaints of sex discrimination during her employment, and the exercise of her rights under Missouri’s workers’ compensation laws. Our client suffered lost wages, emotional distress, and attorneys’ fees.

The Court ordered the payment of lost wages, emotional distress damages, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees and costs.

For more information, contact attorney Nicole Matlock at nmatlock@kennedyhuntlaw.com. If you or someone you know has been a victim of discrimination, our skilled attorneys at Kennedy Hunt, P.C. may be able to help you. Fill out a questionnaire so we can understand your claim.

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On Dec. 14, the United States settled their federal civil rights lawsuit against Centanni. Now, Centanni will pay $4.5 million as part of the settlement. According to the New York Times, if the settlement is approved by a judge, this case will become the largest settlement the Department of Justice “has ever secured in a case involving sexual harassment in housing.” Also according to the NYT, the bulk of the settlement is expected to go to the victims. Centanni is also facing separate criminal charges. 

Kennedy Hunt P.C. applauds the Department of Justice for advocating for the victims of Centanni. As a civil rights law firm, we are committed to the belief that all people deserve access to fair housing, free of coercion, harassment, and assault. If you or someone you know has been a victim of housing discrimination, our skilled attorneys at Kennedy Hunt, P.C. may be able to help you. Fill out a questionnaire so we can understand your claim. 

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Our client, the Plaintiff, was a police dispatcher for the City of Murphysboro. During her employment with the City, she was repeatedly subjected to humiliating and demeaning name-calling; and invasive sexual jokes, remarks, and questions from her supervisors at the police department. Plaintiff’s supervisors also harbored animus towards Plaintiff based on her disability. When she complained, she was terminated.

We filed a lawsuit against the City and Plaintiff’s two supervisors, alleging disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Illinois Human Rights Act, sexual harassment and discrimination under Title VII and the Illinois Human Rights Act, retaliatory termination, and denial of equal protection under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. All three defendants filed motions for summary judgment to dismiss Plaintiff’s lawsuit entirely.

The Court denied each motion for summary judgment as to Plaintiff’s claims for disability discrimination. Defendants’ claimed Plaintiff was not a qualified person with a disability under the ADA because she used corrective medication to treat her ADHD. The Court called this claim “preposterous.” Instead, the Court held the evidence of Plaintiff’s symptoms and medical diagnosis, along with evidence she was prescribed medication continuously, could lead a reasonable jury to find her diagnosis substantially limited her ability to perform the major life activities of concentrating and thinking. The Court further held that it did not matter whether the defendants thought Plaintiff’s diagnosis substantially limited her; it was enough that they knew she had a well-recognized impairment.

The Court also denied each motion for summary judgment as to Plaintiff’s claims of sexual harassment. The Court found, in sum, Plaintiff’s supervisors’ sexual comments were pervasive enough for a reasonable jury to find they created an objectively hostile work environment, effectively changing the terms and conditions of her employment.

Further, the Court found there was enough evidence for a reasonable jury to find Plaintiff was fired because of the complaints she made about sexual and disability harassment, and denied Defendants’ motions for summary judgment as to her retaliation claims.

The Order denied one of the supervisor’s motions for summary judgment in its entirety.

This matter has since been resolved between the parties.

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On her very first day as a dispatcher for the Murphysboro Police Department and throughout her entire employment, our client was subjected to unwanted sexual comments by Mr. Johnson and Mr. Roberts. Things worsened when our client disclosed to the Police Department she had an ADHD diagnosis, a qualifying disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Mr. Johnson refused to continue training our client and began calling her cruel and demeaning names because of her diagnosis. Our client reported the harassment at the end of December 2016.  She was terminated approximately two weeks later.

By subjecting our client to such a hostile work environment, the City of Murphysboro violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Illinois Human Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. The City was aware of the actions of Mr. Johnson and Mr. Roberts but did nothing to remedy their ongoing misconduct. Instead, the City terminated our client in retaliation for her complains, which is also against the law. Our client is seeking damages including lost wages and benefits, front wages, emotional distress damages, compensatory damages, punitive damages, pre- and post-judgment interest, and attorney’s fees and costs.

WPSD, the Southern Illinoisan and Belleville News Democrat recently published articles on the lawsuit. For further information, please contact attorney Sarah Jane Hunt at 314-880-4463 or sarahjane@tkennedylaw.com.

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The Department of Education announced this decision on September 22, 2017. They have yet to put a permanent replacement for the rescinded guidelines in place. But, in the meantime, the DOE has created an interim guideline.

One of the most notable changes of the interim guidance is that educational facilities will place a greater focus on proof and evidence in cases of sexual violence. Past guidance provided a preponderance of evidence model. This new one outlines a “clear and convincing standard” of proof for these cases.

Currently, college campuses have the ability to determine where and when they will implement these interim guidelines.

The Department of Education created a question and answer informational document about what the interim regulations mean.

Title IX became effective in 1972. The landmark education amendment states that, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

On September 1, 2017, The Department of Education wrote that, “Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and its implementing regulations, an institution that receives federal funds must ensure that no student suffers a deprivation of her or his access to educational opportunities on the basis of sex. The Department of Education intends to engage in rulemaking on the topic of schools’ Title IX responsibilities concerning complaints of sexual misconduct, including peer-on-peer sexual harassment and sexual violence.”

Our attorneys are experts in Title IX and education law. If you believe you or someone you know has had their Title IX rights violated, contact our experienced attorneys.

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