An eight-member jury returned a unanimous verdict Wednesday of more than $15 million for two employees who sued the city of Fresno over racism in a hostile workplace.<\/p>\n
The jury of four men and four women awarded plaintiff La-Kebbia \u201cKiki\u201d Wilson<\/a> with $15 million and co-plaintiff Charles Smith<\/a> with $400,000, agreeing with them that they were retaliated against and victims of racism in the city\u2019s code enforcement department.<\/p>\n Wilson, who is Black, said she was targeted by a supervisor because of her race and went out of his way to make her time at work difficult. She shed tears as the verdict was read in court.<\/p>\n The size of the verdict may look large, she said, but it does not compare to what she lived through. She said she believed city officials were more interested in protecting each other than investigating her claims.<\/p>\n \u201cI prayed every day, not for a judgment or dollar amount or to be victorious with a dollar amount,\u201d she said outside the courthouse. \u201cI prayed every single night, every morning I got up to come this trial, let the city be exposed for who they are.\u201d<\/p>\n Her co-plaintiff, Smith, said he was also a victim mistreatment because of his connection to Wilson. Smith, who is white, wiped tears from his eyes outside the courthouse.<\/p>\n \u201cJustice prevailed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Much of the trial circled around a time in July 2018, when Smith told Wilson about language he’d heard from a supervisor in the city of Fresno’s code enforcement department.<\/p>\n Smith testified he felt torn about his friendship with the supervisor, Howard Lacy, and the remarks the supervisor was saying about Wilson, including calling her an \u201centitled (N-word)\u201d and claiming she played the race card to her benefit.<\/p>\n On another occasion, Lacy described Wilson as \u201clazy and a piece of sh–.\u201d<\/p>\n During his testimony, Lacy denied ever using those words. An internal investigation came back without finding he had used the word, according to testimony.<\/p>\n The reveal of the use of the N-word was followed by Wilson loudly exclaiming that the higher ranking city officials were \u201call f—-ing liars\u201d as she walked through the hall of the code enforcement division. She was disciplined for her outburst.<\/p>\n During his closing statement, the employees\u2019 attorney, Kevin Schwin , said the city\u2019s actions defied logic as Wilson was disciplined for using the F-word, but the supervisor received no repercussions after he was accused of using the N-word.<\/p>\n During the city\u2019s investigation of Lacy, they also investigated Wilson. As the victim of that incident, she should not have been under investigation, Schwin said.<\/p>\n