A former Metro Nashville Police Department employee was awarded $300,000 by a Davidson County jury this week after she alleged a “sexually hostile work environment” at the police department.
The woman filed suit in 2020 against the department. She said she faced “continuous” sexual harassment after starting at the MNPD in 2015. She alleged that training officers and supervisors requested photos of her and talked about having sex with her, among other allegations.
The plaintiff wrote that she reported the harassment to supervisors and an investigation was launched in 2019. She left the department in 2021, after the suit was filed.
A jury trial was conducted Monday through Wednesday, and a 12-member jury awarded the woman, Citlaly Gomez, $450,000 in compensatory damages. The court limited the ruling to $300,000, citing state law. The plaintiff is also eligible for attorney’s fees, according to a court ruling.
“My client was completely vindicated by a jury of her peers for the sexual harassment she experienced while working for the Metro Nashville Police Department,” says attorney Jason Lee of Burrow Lee. “We are very pleased with the verdict because it shows that the kind of treatment my client received by numerous police officers will not be tolerated in today’s society. She received the maximum award allowed under the law for this kind of case and she is very appreciative that the jury took her so seriously.”
A Metro representative says the department is considering an appeal.
“This decision just came down, so we are still weighing all of our options for post-trial motions and appeal,” says Brook Fox, an attorney with the Metro Legal Department. “We are disappointed in the result, since the vast majority of what was alleged was never reported to the department. The MNPD does not tolerate sexual harassment in any form, and encourages employees, through training as well as flyers posted throughout the department, to report any issues.”
This article first ran via our sister publication, the Nashville Post.
