CARSON – A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has declined to throw out a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by the former public works director of the city of Carson.
The lawsuit, brought by Maria Elana Williams-Slaughter, a former Carson Public Works Director and a Black woman with a Ph.D., centers on allegations of racial discrimination by Jim Dear, a former Carson City Clerk and Mayor, towards Black employees, including the Plaintiff.
Judge Hobbs denied the City of Carson’s Motion for Summary Judgment. This motion was a pretrial request by the City to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that the case was meritless. The motion was rejected due to the strong evidentiary record against Jim Dear, particularly his discriminatory conduct towards African American employees, including the Plaintiff.
The Judge’s written opinion highlighted damning evidence presented against Jim Dear, facts that underscores the severity of the allegations. Among the critical points, Judge Hobbs wrote: “Mr. Dear treats people differently on the basis of race and that he does not care for African-Americans… and the testimony of [now] Carson City Manager who testified under penalty of perjury during a deposition, that Jim Dear exhibited a particular “disdain for African Americans.”
Maria Elana Williams-Slaughter alleges she was fired in early 2020 in retaliation for speaking out against racial discrimination and for taking part in internal city investigations into the work environment.
She seeks unspecified damages and an injunction enjoining the city from engaging in further alleged discrimination and to quickly investigate future complaints.
Williams-Slaughter, who is Black, was the public works director for five years and in both 2017 and 2018 received positive performance reviews, the suit states. She received several commendations and notes of appreciation from both city employees and public constituents, according to her complaint.
During the plaintiff’s employment, she was the victim of discrimination and retaliation that she alleges was directed by City Councilman Jim Dear, a former city clerk and mayor, according to her lawsuit.
Jim Dear could not be immediately reached for comment.
“Soon after plaintiff’s hire, she would learn of Dear’s disdain for African-Americans,” the suit alleges.
Williams-Slaughter was “directly informed that Dear did not want her to be hired, simply because of her race,” her complaint alleges. “Dear felt that African-Americans were incompetent. More specifically, Dear did not want African-Americans in director level positions within Carson.”
Williams-Slaughter says she was informed of Dear’s alleged racism by multiple individuals, including several high-ranking Carson employees. She told city investigators probing employee complaints of discrimination and retaliation against Dear that she had heard he treated individuals differently on the basis of race and generally disliked Blacks, according to the suit.
Current City Manager David Roberts “testified at his deposition that he agreed with the characterization that [Jim] Dear had particular disdain for African Americans.”
She says she also repeated that she had been told after her hiring that Dear did not want her placed in the public works director position.
The investigation found that Dear had created a severe and pervasive hostile work environment, according to the suit, which says he was censured in late 2015/early 2016 and his responsibilities were significantly reduced.
Beginning in the summer of 2015 and continuing during the next two years, Williams-Slaughter alleges she was repeatedly harassed by one or more “anonymous entities.” She reported what was happening to her, but was “met with resistance,” according to her court papers.
In November 2018, Dear was re-elected to the City Council, and “it became clear that he was focusing on anyone and everyone who had previously participated in the investigation which had led to his censure,” the suit alleges. The plaintiff contends he caused two city clerk’s office employees to lose their jobs through restructuring and became angry when Williams-Slaughter hired them into her department.
On March 10, City Manager Sharon Landers, who Williams-Slaughter viewed as friendly with Dear, called for an unscheduled meeting with the plaintiff, who learned later that afternoon via a letter that she was fired, the suit states.
Landers told Williams-Slaughter that she “served at the pleasure of the city manager” and that she was “not a good fit,” the suit says.
William-Slaughter believes that the true reasons for her termination were Dear’s alleged disdain for blacks, retaliation for her protected complaints against him and her participation in several internal investigations including one involving Dear while he served as city clerk.
Read the judge’s ruling here.
City News Service contributed to this report.