New York Knicks Coach Isiah Thomas Found Guilty of Sexual Harassment
A federal jury in New York city has found Isiah Thomas, Madison Square Garden, and its chairman, James Dolan, guilty of sexual harassment and creating a hostile working environment from a discrimination lawsuit filed by former MSG employee Anucha Browne Sanders. As a result, Browne Sanderse will receive $11.6 million in punitive damages.
In the lawsuit, Browne Sanders alleges that Thomas, the head coach of the New York Knicks professional basketball team, sexually harassed her and that she was fired from the corporation for complaining about Thomas' unwelcome advances.
In their defense, lawyers for MSG and Thomas claimed that Browne Sanders was fired for incompetence, and her dismissal had nothing to do with any kind of retaliation for complaining.
Certainly, Thomas' case was not helped by testimony offered by MSG employees, including Knicks' guard Stephon Marbury, which portrayed the administrative offices as a center for lewd and inappropriate activity. Marbury, for instance, testified that he had engaged in sexual relations with an intern after a company outing to a strip club in 2005.
The jury awarded Browne Sanders a total amount of $11.6 million, including $6 million for the hostile working environment created at MSG and $5.6 million for the unlawful firing. Dolan is responsible for $3 million of the total, and MSG with the rest.
Though the jury found in favor of Browne Sanders, Thomas was not found liable for punitive damages himself.
The jury will decide compensatory damages, meaning compensation for back pay and benefits, at a later date.