AP:
A jury decided Tuesday that New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas sexually harassed a former top team executive, subjecting her to unwanted advances and a barrage of verbal insults, but also said he does not have to pay punitive damages.
After an ugly, three-week trial, the verdict gives Thomas a partial victory in the $10 million lawsuit filed by Anucha Browne Sanders.
Want to reply to a comment? Hint: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to
Thomas was not found "guilty" but rather "liable". Guilt is a criminal law concept and this was not a criminal case. I'm not really a big fan of Isiah but come on Huff-Po get it right.
Oh please.
He DID DO what he was accused of having done.
Hey, we're laymen.
Isiah,
A moron in a nice suit is still a moron
Could they also find him guilty of being one of the crappiest coaches/executives ever. Knicks fans have been rendered comatose under this joke.
There has to be a better method for combating sexual harassment then the lottery-style American legal system. Enabling successful plaintiffs to become instant multi-millionaires creates powerful incentives for plaintiffs and defendants alike to lie.
Well stated.
It was the Clinton admin that changed the rules of evidence to compel disclosure of legal and otherwise private sexual relations.
There was some poetic justice there in the whole Monica thing.
What's the alternative: jail for convicted harassers?
No thanks. I'll take money for a hunert, jack.
Isiah Thomas is smugness wrapped up in arrogance wrapped up in entitlement wrapped up in the delusional world of pro basketball. I think he actually believes he is important...you know...to the world at large.
Off the basketball court, he has been a disaster.
It seems to me that every time Isiah was on camera he came across as being arrogant. His demeanor on the stand was no different. He obviously was not being sympathetic with the whole situation.
Do you believe the Isiah Thomas' demeanor of arrogance contributed to the Jury's decision? -----> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=624
Now we know why Bill Davidson, the Pistons owner, passed on Isiah's offer to work in his front office. Considering Joe Dumars is in charge, I think he made a wise decision. Mr. Davidson only hires class acts.
I can't begin to imagine why anyone would have considered him for anything after what happened to the Pacers. He was handed a virtual gift and destroyed it.
The last time the Knicks saw a playoff game was 6 years ago. Ridiculous. They won all of 33 games last season. How long does the rebuilding thing take?
Have a good hearty laugh, LennieWilkins/Larry Brown!
I'm certainly not in favour of sexual harrasment or poisoned work places, but 11.6 Million Dollars? How much was she making per year and how many years did she work?!
What she made was irrelevant. The only thing that matters is why those idiots went to trial. They got off lucky, particularly Thomas, but I hear they intend to drag it out with appeals.
These awards are based on salary, lost wages, pain and suffering, and sometimes punitive damages. Punitive damages are determined by the assets of the defendant and are designed to be "punitive", thus hurtful to the defendant's bottom line.
His demeanor is probably what did him in...jurors could pick up on it, and obviously it hurt him...
Sports guys do feel a sense of entitlement, a certain swagger that is alienating to many...especially when they ain't got game!
But even if he did, treating the complainant like shit resulted in him getting his just desserts.
This is a guy who used to kiss Magic Johnson before playoff games in the 80's on national television. Weirdo.
good maybe now the Knicks will fire him and we can get a real team again.He is not only a bad boss he is a bad GM.
The Knicks should kick his butt to the curb...let's get a GM in who can get the team going, not some arrogant jerk who disrespects women. There are a lot of guys who can get the job done AND know how to treat women properly...do none of these guys who act like this have sisters or mothers, let alone wives or girlfriends?
.
Perhaps all blacks named "Thomas" are sexual predators.
As Clarence would say, how about a nice coke with a "special" gift on top?
.
Fire him
Do you believe the Isiah Thomas' demeanor of arrogance contributed to the Jury's decision? -----> http://www.youpolls.com/details.asp?pid=624
.
Nothing will happen to Thomas. Have you examined his past performances beyond his basketball skills.
While Rush Limbaugh said, "its my personal opinion Donavan McNabb is overrated and only gets alot of acclaim because he's a black quarterback and the media wants one", he gets FIRED from ESPN for saying his personal opinion on McNabb's abilities.......Thomas said, "the only reason Larry Bird gets alot of acclaim is because he's white." The idiot said this after Bird had dropped 44 points on the Pistons, by the way (LOL). Not only does Thomas NOT get in any trouble but he gets HIRED as a playoff analyst for NBC...... Its called DOUBLE STANDARD, folks.
Then Thomas is coach of the Indiana Pacers and the team does a nose-dive, after years of having a winning record.
Thomas also buys the CBA (Continental Basketball Leauge) and the leauge fold and goes into bankruptcy.
Finally, Thomas becomes GM (later coach, also) of the NY Knicks. And precedes to turn that team into losers. Nowhere near the playoffs.
So I doubt very much if anything will happen to Thomas. There is a DOUBLE STANDARD out there whereby a white guy might not be so lucky if he was guilty of this. I'm being blunt and honest in saying this. The above signals that.
Offensive and irrelevant...
Based on his idiotic public statements, did any sane person NOT see this coming?
ew, he's a dirty, naughty, naughty, boy, er man.
Clarence Thomas, Isiah Thomas.....decent guys and girls don't get accused much less sued for sexual harassment.
Obviously you never learned how to ask nicely for it.
who cares??
I care.
As an African American woman, I say YES!!! (while I pump my fists in the air).
It's about time that someone (especially some of these ungrateful Black men), be held accountable for the disrespectufl behavior that Black women are continually subjected to in this society.
Congradulations Anucha Browne Sanders!
I care.
I have witnessed harrassment against women and Gays for years. If you are over 50 you are an invisible woman. If you are under 50 you are fair game.
This is just further affirmation that men have few thoughts above the waist.
I agree...if a woman dares to say a man did what Isiah did most of the time, she is called a golddigger, she asked for it, you name it, in many ways things have not progressed too far since the women's movement in the early 70s.
This and other juries need to send a clear, strong message: treat women like garbage, and you are going to pay, with jail time or with cash!
Who cares?
Well, let's see if you do when some guy calls you ho and bitch and slut and grabs you without permission...then we will see how much you care...ignorant fool!
Because Thomas is an employee of Madison Square Garden and its dufus owner Jim Dolan, Dolan will end up being the target of a new lawsuit - one he actually brings on himself for admitting he fired Ms. Sanders for claiming sexual harassment. "Can't get much dumber than Dolan!" - an old NYC saying.
Doesn't Dolan own Cablevision? If so, enough said...the WORST cable service, ever!
Cablevision, MSG, Radio City - an idiot owner of all of them.
In America, according to the fucked-up judicial system, every man is a potential sexual harrass-er and rapist.
In the 90s, the city of Minneapolis considered charging construction workers with sexual harrassment if they oogle passing-by females for longer than ... (I can't remember how many minutes).
Wait till Hitlery becomes Prez, and all men in America will be in Guantanamo Bay.
Yeah, that suit in Minneapolis was a good one...can you imagine how upset those construction workers would be if someone catcalled them? The whining would NEVER cease.
GUH!!!
More liberalism gone amuck..........
I thought women were equal.
tough enough for the military, firefighters, police....
AND YET THEY CAN SUE FOR MILLIONS FOR TOUGH LANGUAGE.
YOU CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS, LADIES.
Obviously we can!
I just got home from picking my 17 yr. old son up from school. He mentioned to me that he "must have a nice ass", to which I replied "Oh really, why is that?" to which he replied: "Every day in gym class, girls are always coming up to me and grabbing my ass telling me how nice it is."
I, half jokingly, said "That's sexual harassment."
But, it wouldn't be a joke if he were the one doing that to the 17 year old girls in his gym class, would it?
He wouldn't though, I raised him better than that.
What amazes me is 'why is there a post on this?'
Because Thomas will not get into any trouble whatsoever. This will be off the blog by tomorrow or next day. All he has to say is, "there criticizing me only because I'm black" and I guarantee the media and bloggers will become silent.
Kundara.
Women and their fight for equality has nothing
to do with their sexuality.
Your mother is a woman.How would you feel if he had said this to her?
Double standards.Women in the work place are
not sexual objects there for your entertainment.
If that is what you think then you are as bad
as he is.
Kundera: What a stupid comment to make, you are just showing your ignorance. Please head back to the rat hole you came from.
I thought his comment was very realistic.
Kunderror thinks it's okay to sexually harrass a women in the work place because women are now considered equal to men.... hmmm... makes you really think about what could possibly go on in some men's psyche. It may also explain why it seems completely natural to all male professional athletes to smack each other's asses in and out of the locker rooms around the world.. "I am just treating him as my equal"... like a herd of animals. So now that women have entered men's world or territories they should accept the consequences of such human progress. This leaves much room for further social sexual behavioral studies. How about more room for progress? We are not quite there yet, I see.
So pay up MSG! I raise my glass to Ms. Sanders!
". So now that women have entered men's world or territories they should accept the consequences of such human progress."
No, they should change these things for the better.
Women can now be lawyers, judges, and politicians.
It might be cliche, but as the saying goes: with great power comes great responsibity.
This kind of language is not appropriate for the workplace. I don't care if the woman is a cop, a construction worker, or a lawyer. Men need to get the message that a workplace is a place of business and inappropriate language or actions are not to be tolerated.
It is commonplace to see men in the role of bully in the workplace. It is men with the double standard.
You are in such a state of denial, it's comical.
ok, so I can call your sister and mom a whore and grab my crotch in front of them huh? Is that ok with you numb-nut?
Loading comments…
First Posted: 10- 2-07 01:07 PM | Updated: 03-28-08 02:44 AM