The Kansas City, Kansas, Housing Authority (KCKHA) and three of its former employees have agreed to pay $365,000 to resolve a sexual harassment lawsuit filed in 2015.
The settlement, reached after the Justice Department filed a lawsuit in 2015, requires KCKHA, former Administrative Coordinator Victor Hernandez, former Property Manager Derrick Estelle, Sr., and former Director of Housing Management Ronald Cobb, to pay a total of $360,000 in monetary damages to 14 current and former KCKHA residents and applicants who were subjected to sexual harassment, as well as $5,000 to the United States in civil penalties.
The victims, many of whom were subjected to unwanted sexual conduct, including being asked sexual questions, shown pornographic pictures and videos, and being exposed to explicit sexual comments and conduct, will receive a total of $360,000 in monetary damages.
According to the complaint, Hernandez, Estelle, and Cobb engaged in this conduct while exercising their authority as employees of KCKHA.
‘Sexual harassment of women is unacceptable and will not be tolerated,’ said Acting Assistant Attorney General John M. Gore of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. ‘No one should ever have to endure the type of outrageous conduct that occurred in this case in exchange for obtaining or keeping a place to live.’
The Justice Department alleges that Hernandez subjected women to unwanted sexual conduct as a condition for favorable hearing decisions.
The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, and disability. Sexual harassment is a form of prohibited sex discrimination under this law.
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Key Facts
- State: Kansas
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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