Dallas Judge Discrimination Lawsuit
Dallas Judge Discrimination Lawsuit
STACI WILLIAMS, §
§
Plaintiffs; §
§
v. § CIV ACTION NO. 3:11-CV-00397
§
THE CITY OF DALLAS, TEXAS, §
§
Defendant. § JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
COMES NOW Plaintiff Staci Williams (“Plaintiff” or “Williams”) and files this Original
Complaint against Defendant the City of Dallas, Texas (“Defendant” or “the City”), and
I.
PARTIES
1. Plaintiff Staci Williams is a female adult citizen who resides in the State of Texas
and worked for the City of Dallas as a full-time municipal court judge from 2006 to 2010.
Plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that she experienced harassment, discrimination and retaliation based
on sex, disability, and taking FMLA leave by the City of Dallas and its policy makers, agents
and/or employees.
2. Defendant, The City of Dallas, Texas, is a municipal corporation under the laws of
the State of Texas, located within Dallas County, Texas. The City of Dallas may be served
through the mayor, clerk, secretary, or treasurer pursuant to Texas Civil Practice & Remedies
Code section 17.024(b) at Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla Street, Dallas, Texas 75201.
II.
JURISDICTION AND VENUE
3. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of this action pursuant to 28
U.S.C. section 1331 and 28 U.S.C. section 1367(a). The action arises under, and is brought
4. The Court also has jurisdiction to hear this matter under the Texas Commission on
Human Rights Act (“TCHRA”), which expressly waives sovereign immunity otherwise enjoyed
Similarly, sovereign immunity is abrogated by 42 U.S.C. section 2000e (“Title VII”), 42 U.S.C.
section 12202 (“ADA”), 29 U.S.C. section 2601 et seq. (“FMLA”), and 42 U.S.C. section 1983
Discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) and the Texas
Workforce Commission (“TWC”) on November 10, 2009. The EEOC issued a Notice of Right
to Sue on November 30, 2010, which Williams received on December 11, 2010.
6. Venue is proper in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas
Division, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. section 2000e(5) because it is the district in which the unlawful
employment practice was committed, the judicial district in which the employment records
relevant to such practice are maintained and administered, and the judicial district in which the
aggrieved person worked or would have worked but for the alleged unlawful employment
practice. Venue is further proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. section 1391 as a substantial part of the
III.
NATURE OF THE CLAIM
7. Williams seeks actual and compensatory damages based on the City’s harassment,
discrimination and retaliation against her based on sex, disability, and taking FMLA leave in
violation of Section 1983, the TCHRA, the ADA, the FMLA, and Title VII, which culminated in
IV.
WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION, HARASSMENT, AND RETALIATION
Committee (“JNC”), the City hired Williams as a full-time municipal court judge for a two-year
term.
9. In Williams’s position as a municipal court judge, one of her duties was to sign
search warrants presented to her. In 2007, she signed the second highest number of search
warrants (90), where, in comparison, fellow Municipal Court Judge Phyllis Lister-Brown only
signed nine (9) search warrants, Judge Cheryl Williams signed twenty (20), and Judge Victor
10. Municipal court judges also are required to sign arrest warrants. In 2007, Williams
signed one hundred ninety-six (196) arrest warrants, where the judge with the second highest
number of signed warrants was Administrative Judge Jay Robinson with eighty-one (81). During
the period January 1, 2008 through July 9, 2008, Williams signed the second highest number of
11. During Judge Williams’s first full term on the bench, Judge Victor Lander was also
a municipal court judge. Throughout her tenure, Williams increasingly started noticing Lander
12. Williams tried to ignore Lander’s inappropriate comments and advances, but
13. In early to mid-2008, then serving Administrative Judge Jay Johnson completed his
“Judicial Performance Evaluation” of Williams. He evaluated Williams on her first two years as a
full-time municipal court judge. He rated Williams “excellent” to “superior” in every category,
including judicial temperament, judicial ethics, desire to understand the law, collegiality and work
ethic. In or around August of 2008, after serving her first two-year term, Williams was
14. At this same time, Lander was appointed Administrative Judge for the Municipal
Court.
16. The Municipal Court Judiciary’s tradition and usual protocol is to assign judges to
specific courts and dockets by seniority, with the Magistrate Court (which was the least desirable
at the time because there was no trial work and the docket mainly consisted of the processing of
paperwork) being assigned to the judge with the least seniority. In September 2008, Judge
Lander made an exception to this practice, choosing to assign Williams to the Magistrate Court,
even though there were two other municipal court judges with less seniority.
17. Not only did Lander assign Williams to the Magistrate Court, but he substantially
increased her docket. He increased the number of defendants Judge Williams’s Magistrate Court
was to see each morning from 50 to 75, increased the number of defendants each afternoon from
40 to 65, and removed the restrictions on the number of cases each defendant could present to the
Court. The net effect of Lander’s reapportionment of work was to cause Williams to have 272%
more citations (on average, 191 citations) handled each morning than any other court and 252%
more citations (on average, 101 citations) handled each afternoon than any other court.
18. When Williams brought the disparate treatment to Lander’s attention, Lander
ignored Williams. Instead, Lander gave additional work to Williams. Williams was required to
review 60 “Mail-In Off Docket” motions per month, while other judges reviewed 3-4 per month.
Williams’s Thursday afternoon “study afternoons” were eliminated, while all other municipal
court judges were permitted to keep these breaks. Further, Williams was assigned to mentor 7
new associate judges, while other judges were only assigned 3 new associate judges. These tasks
were in addition to Williams’ heavy docket and her responsibilities to perform jury orientation
each morning.
continued.
20. On October 30, 2008, during the signing of a warrant for a Dallas Police Officer,
Lander came into Williams’s office, uninvited, and commented in an inappropriate tone that he
“liked the color of [her] lipstick.” Lander then turned to the officer and stated, “Oh, we have to
21. In May of 2009, when Williams went to Lander’s office to inquire about getting
credit for the two hours of compensatory/FLEX time Lander promised her and another judge for
working the Homeless Docket on a Saturday morning, Lander, in front of his assistant, Oweda
Miller-Johnson, stated, “You need to shorten your dress, it is too long. You need to wear your
22. Later that month, Lander made another inappropriate comment to Williams in
front of a female Associate Judge, stating “Hey Judge Williams, that is an ugly bruise on your leg.
Williams with the tools she needed to complete her heavy workload. Williams requested that she
be provided a computer on the bench, like every other municipal court judge. Lander ignored
Williams’s request for over three months. It was only when City Councilman David Neumann
visited Williams’s court and noted the lack of a computer on her bench that the situation was
corrected.
24. As Williams continued to rebuff Lander’s advances and ignore his retaliatory,
harassing and discriminatory actions, Lander’s conduct escalated, including increasingly making
and documenting allegations of minor violations against her. Lander’s memoranda containing
these one-sided allegations were often hostile, accusatory and lacked objectivity. The memoranda
were rarely about her performance on the bench, but were rather minor administrative issues,
ranging from parking in the wrong parking spot to entering the wrong code on her timesheets to
using too much paper. Williams was often unaware of the complaints, and when/if she became
aware, was not permitted to respond or otherwise defend herself, despite repeated requests.
25. Williams continued to attempt to perform her duties to the best of her abilities. In
addition to her heavy docket and other duties, Williams developed a community service booklet
for the public regarding volunteer opportunities, worked with Dallas Police Department officers at
all hours of the night to get warrants signed, and volunteered on weekends to help with the
Homeless Docket. On January 12, 2009, Chief of Police David M. Kunkle sent a letter to
Williams commending her and providing his personal thanks for her assistance with search
warrants during the December 2008 months and the New Year’s holiday, during which she
worked an eight-hour shift (8:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. on New Year’s Eve) to help local police.
26. In January 2009, due to suffering nausea, chest pains and other medical problems
related to the exhaustion of handling the increased workload and stress of trying to comply with
the newly-imposed minimum requirements Lander put in place, Williams applied for, was
27. While on FMLA leave for only one day, Lander (rather than mailing a letter or
calling) sent two Municipal Court bailiffs to Williams’s house to deliver a letter regarding her
FMLA leave. In the letter, Lander instructed Williams to return to work the next day, further
attempting to harass, intimidate and humiliate her. Williams remained on FMLA leave.
28. After Williams went on FMLA leave, Lander received complaints from the other
municipal court judges that the load for the Magistrate Court (which Williams had been handling
but which was now being handled by other judges) was too large. Less than six days after
Williams went on FMLA leave, Lander began modifying the Magistrate Court’s docket. He
reduced the number of defendants being seen each day, reduced the number of citations that each
defendant could present in a day, re-distributed the “Mail-In Off Docket” motion responsibilities
so that they were (once again) divided equally among the full-time judges, implemented early cut-
off times when defendants and attorneys could enter the Magistrate Court, and implemented a
29. By July 2009, Williams had had enough. Although she had been communicating
with the City’s Human Resources Department orally for several months, she realized that
Lander’s inappropriate behavior was not going to stop and that it would likely become an issue
30. On July 11, 2009, Williams sent the City’s Director of Human Resources, David
Etheridge, a letter detailing her concerns about Lander’s inappropriate comments and advances,
31. On August 19, 2009, when Lander’s harassment, discrimination, and retaliation
had not stopped, Williams sent Etheridge another letter detailing her continued concerns about
Lander’s behavior.
32. On September 30, 2009, aware of the harassment allegations made by Williams
against him, Lander prepared and signed an Interim Performance Evaluation regarding Williams,
giving her a score of 15.75 out of 20. Williams was the only judge who was not provided with an
in-person interview to discuss the evaluation. Lander’s evaluation of Williams was substantially
lower than the Judicial Performance Appraisal (that is based on the same factors and criteria) that
former Administrative Judge Jay Robinson completed on March 31, 2008, where Williams
received a score of 18 out of 20. Additionally, Lander’s evaluation of Williams included negative
33. It was not until November 2, 2009, nearly five months after Williams’s initial
complaint to the City’s Human Resources Department, that the City provided any response to
Williams concerning her complaints against Lander for harassment, discrimination and retaliation.
34. On November 10, 2009, after realizing that the City was not going to make a good
faith effort to work with her to investigate her complaints, Williams filed a claim against the City
with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Texas Workforce Commission for
harassment, discrimination and retaliation based on sex, disability, and taking FMLA leave.
35. On December 18, 2009, Williams sent the City’s Human Resources Department a
letter voicing her concerns about Lander’s continued harassment and retaliation and the City’s
36. In January 2010, the process of the reappointment of the municipal court judges
began. All of the municipal court judges, including Williams, submitted applications to the JNC
through the City’s Human Resources Department. The JNC then was briefed by Dallas City
Attorney Thomas Perkins. Per the JNC’s request, Perkins’s briefing concerning Williams
37. The JNC subsequently interviewed the judges. However, while all of the JNC
members are supposed to attend all of the judges’ interviews, several members of the JNC did not
attend Williams’s interview but were still permitted to rate and vote on Williams. Williams was
not afforded an opportunity to address any of the complaints made against her during the
interview, nor was she aware that the JNC had been briefed on her EEOC complaints.
38. Based on this information, the JNC ranked the judges. Williams received a ranking
of zero (0) from every single JNC member except one (who ranked her 9 out of 10), despite
receiving an administrative judge grade and a prosecution rating equivalent to (and better than
some) reappointed judges. The JNC then rated and ranked 18 candidates to refer to the Ad-Hoc
Legislative Committee of the Dallas City Council, ranking Williams 17 out of 18 in order of
preference. The JNC’s rankings reflect its recommendation to the Ad-Hoc Legislative Committee
39. On May 24, 2010, Lander’s close friend, City Councilmember Vonciel Jones-Hill,
sent an email to the Ad-Hoc Legislative Committee Chairwoman Angela Hunt, and cc’d Dallas
City Attorney Thomas Perkins, asking, “are we able to have access to any complaints by or
40. Three days later, in an email dated May 27, 2010, Jones-Hill reiterated her
previous request to Chairwoman Hunt and City Attorney Perkins that the Council’s Ad Hoc
Legislative Committee be apprised of any complaints by or against any of the current municipal
judges. Jones-Hill also inquired whether the City Attorney would provide the Committee with a
Confidential Summary before the meeting and provide any supporting materials during the
meeting.
complaints, Perkins provided her and the Ad-Hoc Legislative Committee with a memorandum
that purportedly summarized his briefing to the JNC. The memorandum (despite being titled,
“Complaints Regarding Municipal Court Judges”) only discussed complaints involving Williams –
no complaints against other municipal court judges were mentioned, although complaints did
Williams (to which Williams had never been given an opportunity to respond) and Williams’s July
and August 2009 complaints to the City’s Human Resources Department regarding Lander’s
discrimination, harassment and retaliation. The memorandum also detailed Williams’s charges
42. In mid to late June of 2010, the Ad-Hoc Legislative Committee of the City Council
confirmed and adopted the JNC’s recommendations and submitted to the City Council its list of
11 candidates to fill the 11 available municipal court judge positions. On June 23, 2010, the City
Council confirmed and adopted the Ad-Hoc Legislative Committee’s recommendations. Williams
was the only incumbent Municipal Court Judge who was not reappointed.
43. During the June 23, 2010 City Council meeting, Mayor Pro-Tem Dwaine Caraway
criticized the decision to not reinstate Williams, stating the process used in determining her non-
reinstatement was “unfair and unprofessional,” and she “was railroaded out.” He went on to
comment that judges should be judged based on the merits of what they did inside the courtroom,
and based on the merits, Williams was one of the best judges on the bench. Caraway further
stated that Williams “was punished because she raised lady issues,” and the discussions about
Williams “warranted a complete vetting of the allegations, accusations that were brought to our
attention.” Caraway’s statements clearly indicate that the decision to not reinstate Williams was
based on, and in retaliation for, Williams’s complaints of discrimination, harassment and
44. On June 24, 2010 at 4:15 p.m., a memorandum from Lander was slipped under
Williams’s office door while she worked. In the memorandum, Lander notified Williams that the
next day, June 25, 2010, would be her last day and that she had until the close of business that day
V.
CAUSES OF ACTION
46. Williams timely filed complaints of sexual harassment with the EEOC and the
47. Williams has been subjected to harassment based on her sex that has been
unwelcome and undesirable or offensive to her, and the harassment complained of altered a term,
condition or privilege of her employment. Defendant knew or should have known of the
48. Defendant’s wrongful acts and the conduct of its agents and/or employees acting
within the course and scope of their employment have been the proximate cause of Williams’s
50. Williams timely filed complaints of discrimination based on sex and disability with
the EEOC and the TWC and has received a “Right to Sue” letter.
51. Williams has been subjected to discrimination based on her sex and her disability
that has been unwelcome and undesirable or offensive to her, and the discrimination complained
of altered a term, condition or privilege of her employment. Defendant knew or should have
known of the discrimination but failed to take prompt, remedial action to eliminate it.
52. Defendant’s wrongful acts and the conduct of its agents and/or employees acting
within the course and scope of their employment have been the proximate cause of Williams’s
54. Williams timely filed complaints of retaliation with the EEOC and the TWC and
55. Williams has suffered tangible adverse employment actions in retaliation for
reporting sexual harassment and discrimination and/or her disability and associated FMLA leave,
including Lander’s hostile, abusive, and retaliatory actions, the City’s failure to investigate and
cure the conduct, and the City’s failure to reinstate Williams as a municipal court judge. This
56. Defendant’s wrongful acts and the conduct of Defendant’s agents and/or
employees acting within the course and scope of their employment have been the proximate cause
58. Williams timely filed complaints of gender discrimination with the EEOC and
59. Williams has suffered tangible adverse employment actions due to the policies and
procedures of the City of Dallas that have caused disparate treatment and/or disparate impact
60. The City’s wrongful acts and the conduct of City agents and/or employees acting
within the course and scope of their employment have been the proximate cause of Williams’s
62. Williams timely filed complaints of sexual harassment with the EEOC and has
63. Williams has been subject to harassment based on her sex that was unwelcome and
undesirable or offensive to her, and the harassment complained of altered a term, condition or
privilege of her employment. The City knew or should have known of the harassment but failed
64. The City’s wrongful acts and the conduct of City agents and/or employees acting
within the course and scope of their employment have been the proximate cause of Williams’s
66. Williams timely filed complaints of retaliation with the EEOC and TWC and has
67. Williams has suffered tangible adverse employment actions in retaliation for
reporting harassment and discrimination based on sex. This retaliation is in violation of Title VII.
68. The City’s wrongful acts and the conduct of City agents and/or employees acting
within the course and scope of their employment have been the proximate cause of Williams’s
G. Violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. § 12131-12165 and
12202-12203)
70. Williams timely filed complaints of harassment, discrimination and retaliation based
on disability with the EEOC and TWC and has received a “Right to Sue” letter.
71. Williams is a qualified individual with a disability as that term is defined under the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 (“ADA”) and was capable of performing the essential
72. The City was aware of Williams’s disability, or perceived Williams to have a
disability, and began harassing, discriminating and retaliating against Williams in various ways
following her FMLA leave, including rating Williams negatively on performance reviews. When
Williams complained of the discrimination to the City and made a claim with the EEOC, the City
H. Violation of the Family Medical Leave Act (29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq.)
75. Williams timely filed complaints of harassment, discrimination and retaliation based
on disability and taking FMLA leave with the EEOC and TWC and has received a “Right to Sue”
letter.
76. Williams qualified for, was approved by the City for, and took FMLA leave in
January and February 2009 for serious illness. During and following her FMLA leave, Williams
77. When Williams reported the harassment and discrimination to the City, the City
78. Williams seeks actual and compensatory damages for the City’s violations of the
FMLA.
80. At all times relevant to this suit, both the City Council and Administrative Judge
Lander were policymakers for the City and the Municipal Courts and were ultimately responsible
for the effective institution of policies and procedures that affected Williams.
81. Through these policymakers, the City had a formal and informal custom, policy,
against the City under Title VII, the ADA, and the FMLA in violation of
those Acts;
for such reactions, in violation of Title VII and the Equal Protection
Clause.
82. Although Williams reported these violations to David Etheridge and the Dallas
Human Resources Department, and the City Council was briefed on the violations, no action was
taken. The City was knowingly and deliberately indifferent to the violations of Williams’s
83. Defendant’s wrongful acts constitute a violation of 42 U.S.C. section 1983 in that
the Defendant, acting under color of law as a municipal corporation and officials empowered by
that municipality (including the Dallas City Council and Administrative Judge Lander), willfully
and intentionally violated Williams’s civil rights as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United
84. Williams has been legally, proximately and substantially injured by this wrongful
conduct. Among other things, Williams’s reputation has been severely damaged, limiting her
opportunities for other employment. In addition, Williams’ has suffered emotional distress and
VI.
EXPERT AND ATTORNEYS’ FEES
85. Williams seeks recovery of her expert and attorneys’ fees under Federal Rule of
Civil Procedure 23, the TCHRA, Title VII, the ADA, the FMLA and 42 U.S.C. section 1983.
VII.
JURY DEMAND
86. Williams demands a trial by jury on all issues of fact and damages in this action.
XIV.
PRAYER
b. Enter a judgment that Defendant’s acts as set forth herein are in violation
c. Award Williams lost wages, including back pay, front pay and lost fringe
benefits;
e. Award Williams the costs of this action, including the fees and costs of
h. Grant Williams such other and further relief as this Court finds necessary
and proper.
Respectfully Submitted,
4825-6822-1192, V. 1