"But despite repeated calls from city leaders and residents for his resignation, Lopez has given no indication he plans to step down. His decision to remain on the City Council has already saddled the Pomona Valley community with hundreds of thousands of dollars in insurance costs, city officials say, and compounded the toll on the two employees - both of whom still work at City Hall."
""It feels like we are back in square one," said one plaintiff, Edmund Garcia. "I still constantly feel like I have to watch my back." Lopez has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, and continued to do so even after the ruling. "I have maintained my innocence. I don't think the city should have been dragged into this proceeding at all," he said during a council meeting Monday. Lopez did not respond to repeated requests for comment from The Times this week."
San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Kory Mathewson found Montclair Councilman Ben Lopez civilly liable under California's Fair Employment and Housing Act for repeatedly subjecting two male city employees to unwanted sexual advances, including anonymously sending explicit photographs. Lopez has denied wrongdoing and has not indicated plans to resign, remaining on the City Council. The city has incurred hundreds of thousands of dollars in insurance costs related to the case. Only Montclair voters can remove Lopez; automatic removal would require a criminal felony conviction. Plaintiffs remain employed at City Hall and report ongoing distress.
Read at Los Angeles Times
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]