Facts

Plaintiff Heidi Garcia was the assistant director of Santa Barbara County's Alcohol, Drug, and Mental Health Services. In 2005, Garcia made oral and written complaints to the County's Equal Employment Office about being mistreated because of her gender and her Jewish religion by her (then) supervisor, the department head of the County's Alcohol Drug and Mental Health Department. She also asserted that she had complained to him that he may have a conflict of interest by sitting on the board of a non-profit entity.

In May 2007, Garcia was given a different position and, two months later, was fired.

She sued the County for civil rights violations, alleging that the County unlawfully retaliated against her and discriminated against her based on her gender and Jewish religion.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiff contended that, as a result of her complaints, she was demoted and later fired by a new department head who subsequently took over.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
The County claimed Garcia had a role in causing a multi-million dollar budget deficit within her division, exposed the County to millions of dollars in potential liability and as an "at will" executive, was terminated when a new interim department head was hired by the Board of Supervisors to address the fiscal and structural problems within the department. The County took the position that although she was an at-will employee who could be terminated any lawful reason or no reason at all, it had ample cause to do so.

Settlement Discussions

Plaintiff initially demanded $850,000 pre-suit (through former counsel) and $400,000 at time of trial. The County made no counter offer to settle the case.

Damages

According to defense counsel: Plaintiff sought to recover $374,315, based on five years of continued losses (which included past lost earning). In the alternative, plaintiff asked for $590,315 based on ten years of continued losses (which also included past lost earnings).

Result

The jury awarded plaintiff $431,000, which included $236,000 in lost wages, $150,000 for past emotional distress, and $45,000 for future lost wages.

Other Information

Plaintiff will bring a motion for attorney fees under Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and under Labor Code provisions protecting whistle blowers.