Fourth Circuit: Testimony of Other Women in Sexual Harassment Case is Admissible
In a recent decision, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s admission of testimony by female employees, other than the plaintiff, regarding their own experiences of sexual harassment by the defendant. The Court stated that such testimony is often relevant to a plaintiff’s hostile work environment claim and the employer was not unfairly prejudiced – even though the testimony did not in any way involve the actions of the defendant against the plaintiff.
In King v. McMillan, a former deputy in the Sheriff’s Office for the City of Roanoke, VA alleged that the Sheriff sexually harassed her. Other women testified at trial that the defendant made inappropriate sexual remarks to them as well, asked for kisses and hugs, and touched them in ways that made them feel uncomfortable. The Court determined that the testimony of the other women was relevant to two elements in a hostile work environment claim: (1) whether the defendant’s unwelcome conduct toward the plaintiff was because of the plaintiff’s sex, and (2) whether the unwelcome conduct toward the plaintiff was sufficiently severe or pervasive to create a hostile work environment.
The important aspect of this decision is the determination by the Fourth Circuit that the evidence was relevant and its admission was not a violation of Rule 403 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, which excludes relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury. The appeals court noted that proper jury instructions were provided on this issue and unfair prejudice was further avoided by only admitting testimony of harassment that occurred during the same timeframe of the plaintiff’s employment. Thus, the Sheriff’s Office was not able to limit the evidence to matters involving the plaintiff. The trial court specifically acknowledged that disaggregating the experience of its employees was not the law.
What can you do to prevent a sexual harassment claim against your company? In addition to establishing and implementing a comprehensive sexual harassment policy, you and your human resources department should learn to recognize the patterns of sexual harassment. As was apparent from this case, some harassers are adroit at protecting themselves from disclosure and rely on threats or rewards to prevent complaints. Regular training of all employees and establishing clear communication lines for employees to report behavior anonymously will certainly assist in preventing such legal entanglements.
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