New York Paralegal Blog

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Bojangles’ Restaurants, Inc. violated federal law by subjecting female employees to a sexually hostile work environment at one of its corporate-owned restaurants, and by firing one woman who complained about the sexual harassment, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today. The restaurant involved in the lawsuit is located in Greensboro, N.C.

MILWAUKEE – A federal district court judge in Milwaukee has entered a consent decree resolving an employment discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against a major Wisconsin building products company, the agency announced today.

PORTLAND, ORE. – Fred Meyer Stores, Inc., a grocery chain employing more than 30,000, violated federal law when it failed to stop a customer from sexually harassing several female employees, the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today. According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, female employees at Fred Meyer’s Oak Grove store in Milwaukie, Ore., were sexually harassed by a customer who visited the store almost daily, and often several times a day, since at least 2007. He would sit by the employee time clock in order to pull women onto his lap as they walked past to punch in. He would also rub up against female workers, giving unwanted hugs and groping their bodies, the EEOC said. When they protested, the customer would smirk or make comments such as, “That’s what they’re there for,” indicating the employee’s breasts. Despite numerous complaints by the staff, the EEOC said, Fred Meyer managers excused the customer’s offensive behavior ...

Brooklyn, July 7, 2011 – Kings County District Attorney Charles J. Hynes today announced the sentencing of Justin Harris, 29, Glendon Jackson, 23, and DeShawn Owens, 26, for sexually assaulting three women and assaulting and robbing multiple victims during an August 2007 home invasion. Glendon Jackson was sentenced to 260 years in prison. Justin Harris was sentenced to 192 years in prison. DeShawn Owens was sentenced to 153 years in prison. Defendants Harris and Jackson were convicted on June 27. Owens was convicted by a separate jury on June 28. Harris was convicted on six counts of Robbery in the First Degree, two counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, five counts of Unlawful Imprisonment in the First Degree, one count of Burglary in the First Degree and other charges. Jackson was convicted of two counts of Rape in the First Degree, six counts of Robbery in the First Degree, two counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, one count of Criminal Sexual Act in the First De...

MINEOLA, NY – Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced today that a Bethpage pediatrician has been indicted by a grand jury on charges that he sexually abused and assaulted girls as young as 11 years old under the guise of medical examinations, and then secretly videotaped and photographed them.Rakesh Punn The 60-count indictment, filed with the court on Monday, charges Dr. Rakesh Punn, 53, of Bethpage, with four counts of Criminal Sale of a Prescription for a Controlled Substance, 28 counts of Assault in the Second Degree, 10 counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, three counts of Promoting a Sexual Performance by a Child, one count of Possessing a Sexual Performance by a Child, six counts of Unlawful Surveillance in the Second Degree, seven counts of Fraudulently Obtaining a Signature, and one count of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Third Degree. If convicted, he faces up to seven years in prison on each of the 28 assault charges. He is schedu...

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today filed suit against Rawland Leon Sorensen, the owner and manager of more than 50 residential rental properties in Bakersfield, Calif., alleging a pattern or practice of sexual harassment in violation of the Fair Housing Act. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, alleges that Sorensen sexually harassed female tenants by making unwelcome sexual comments and advances; exposing his genitals to female tenants; touching tenants without their consent; granting and denying housing benefits based on sex; and taking adverse action against women who refused his sexual advances. Sorensen has operated his rental business for more than 30 years.

Agency Says Complaints of Misconduct at Vet Pharm Were Ignored SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A South Dakota animal health products distributor violated federal civil rights laws by allegedly permitting a male employee in its Sioux Falls distribution center to sexually harass female employees, even after direct complaints were made to a manager, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it filed Friday. According to the EEOC’s suit, between 2007 and 2008, an employee of Vet Pharm, Inc. told sexually explicit jokes and made highly personalized sexual comments which demeaned and humiliated female employees. The EEOC’s administrative investigation indicated that complaints were made to a direct supervisor, who allegedly took no action to remedy the harassment. Further, the investigation showed that even after complaints were allegedly raised with upper management, the company failed to stop the harasser’s conduct, which was so severe that a female employee felt...

CHICAGO – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed suit today against RJB Properties, Inc. and Blackstone Consulting, Inc., charging that the companies discriminated against Hispanic employees because of their national origin, sexually harassed a male employee, and retaliated against employees who objected to the discrimination against Latino employees. RJB, based in Orland Park, Ill., provides facilities management and janitorial services. RJB’s president is Ronald Blackstone, and his son, Joe Blackstone, is president of Blackstone. Blackstone, based in Los Angeles, provides janitorial and food services. The EEOC’s lawsuit arose out of charges of discrimination filed by 14 employees who worked for RJB as janitors or supervisors. Blackstone is named in the suit because a vice president of Blackstone supervised the employees at RJB and directed or participated in the alleged discrimination against them.

EEOC Says Paradise Restaurant Manager Subjected Women to Abuse SAN FRANCISCO — Jack in the Box franchisee Kobra Associates, Inc., which operates about 70 restaurants in Northern and Eastern California, violated federal law by allowing a manager at its Paradise, Calif., store to sexually harass female employees under his supervision, according to a federal lawsuit filed yesterday by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the harassment by the Jack in the Box restaurant manager included frequent remarks about female employees’ anatomy and unwelcome sexual advances and innuendos. The agency’s investigation found that he would refer to women as “bitches,” “sluts” and “whores,” as well as ogle and touch them inappropriately. Despite complaints, including messages left with Jack in the Box’s ethics hotline, the EEOC says, the company failed to take corrective action. Faced with ongoing harassment after a year of raising the issue to the comp...

WASHINGTON – Maceo Simmons, a former officer with the Jackson Police Department in Jackson, Miss., was sentenced to life imprisonment on Aug. 4, 2008, for sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman he had detained after a traffic stop, the Justice Department announced today. The sentence arises out of an incident that occurred on Sept. 19, 1999. The victim was a passenger in a car, which was pulled over by Jackson police officers for running a stop sign. Simmons handcuffed the victim and placed her in the back of his patrol car. He and another officer then drove her to a remote and isolated location, where Simmons repeatedly raped the victim while the second officer acted as a lookout. Simmons was originally sentenced to a term of 20 years imprisonment, but that sentence was reversed on appeal. "The court’s sentence reflects the gravity of the defendant’s egregious conduct," said Grace Chung Becker, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Divi...