THE
$90,000 KISS: LAW FIRM SETTLES SEXUAL HARASSMENT WITH NEW JERSEY COLLEGE
Lawyers
representing Tina Mears, a 25 year old student, announced that a
settlement has been reached with Cumberland County College in New Jersey
for $90,000 in a case where Mears claimed that the college was
responsible for the actions of a professor -- John Reinard -- who forced
a kiss on her after a political rally in 1995.
According to
the lawsuit, Mears claimed to be the victim of sexual harassment. In the
lawsuit, Mears brought a claim against the college under Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972, a federal law which prohibits
discrimination of the basis of gender, including sexual harassment, in
educational programs and activities receiving federal financial
assistance. The law permits students to file against educational
institutions which receive federal funds.
Mears' civil
lawsuit against Cumberland County College and Reinard followed a
criminal complaint that Mears had also filed immediately following the
kissing incident. The Woodbury Municipal Court found Reinard guilty of
harassment. Reinard is appealing his conviction.
In
describing the settlement, Mears' lawyer stated that "the College
avoided a potentially costly and embarrassing trial, during which we
would have revisited all the allegations concerning Reinard. That would
have reflected badly on the College and would have also compounded the
emotional stress that Tina Mears has already suffered."
He noted
that an added benefit of a case like this was that it would hopefully
serve to deter future incidents of sexual harassment in schools and
colleges.
