Facts

Martha Berndt, Marta Hastings, Sophia Curry, Shelly Adcock, Patricia Moreira, Karen Curry, Lisa Boyd, Kimberley Morin, Raisa Jeffries and the estate of Judy Longo sought to represented a class of current and former female employees of the California Dept. of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

PLAINTIFFS' CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiffs claimed that they suffered a pattern of sexual harassment by inmates, which included exhibitionist behavior, indecent exposure, masturbation, and ejaculation. They claimed that since 1997, over 2,0000 such incidents have occurred, and that there was a policy of discrimination that existed at defendant's institutions. Plaintiffs also alleged that officials did not take action on their complaints.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Defendant argued that plaintiffs did not meet standards for class certification.

Result

The court denied plaintiffs' motion for class certification, noting a vast claim period, differing claims, a lack of numerosity, and a lack of precision in the motion papers.