A former Louisiana State University athletics administer who alleged LSU officials retaliated against her for reporting sexual harassment complaints against a former head football coach has questioned the conduct of jurors who rejected her allegations.
During a jury trial conducted last month in the Middle District of Louisiana, jurors dismissed a lawsuit brought by former administrator Sharon Lewis against LSU`s Board of Supervisors and other officials. Lewis argued in her 2021 lawsuit that she was entitled to compensatory and punitive damages after she experienced retaliation for reporting complaints of student sexual harassment against former coach Les Miles, who was fired by LSU in 2016.
The jurors found that a preponderance of the evidence in the case did not support Lewis’ allegations, including her claim that she did not receive a pay increase with an August 2020 promotion because she reported on Title IX-protected complaints of sexual misconduct. Nor did the jurors find that she was fired in 2022 for reporting these sexual harassment complaints, was denied a pay increase for filing a complaint about workplace gender bias or that she experienced a hostile work environment due to her gender.
Lewis’ lawsuit alleged the wrongful acts that she disclosed were overtly or tacitly encouraged by the school’s Board of Supervisors and senior administrators.
“... Or alternatively, the intentional discriminatory acts of agents and employees were ignored by upper and middle management with negligence and gross negligence, which contributed to the cause, the harm, the damage and this is the basis of this complaint and subject action,” the lawsuit states.
A report by the Husch Blackwell law firm that examined the handling of several Title IX-related incidents backed up her allegations, according to the legal complaint.
In a statement emailed to the Louisiana Record, Lewis’ legal team questioned the jury’s decision-making, as well as actions by the LSU legal team and witnesses.
“The jury in the federal trial of Sharon Lewis vs. Louisiana State University failed to follow the instructions of the trial court and apply the overwhelming evidence that favored Ms. Lewis,” the statement said. “The all-white, majority-male jury was emboldened and encouraged by LSU’s legal team when they referred to Ms. Lewis and her attorneys as ‘hustlers.’”
The statement also criticized Assistant Athletic Director Verge Ausberry of injecting race into the trial by claiming Lewis, an African-American, was a “racist.”
“In a deliberate attempt to tamper with the jury, Athletic Director Scott Woodward winked at the jurors from the witness stand and gave them a thumbs-up, and at least four of the jurors also responded with a thumbs-up,” the statement said. “The court removed one of the nine-member jury, but the damage had been done.”
Lewis’ legal team said such incidents interfered with her ability to obtain a fair trial and that the team would ask the federal court to “correct this injustice.”
The university supported the jury’s decision.
“The simple truth is that Ms. Lewis was never retaliated or discriminated against,” LSU said in a statement. “She was let go along with 41 other football staff members and coaches after a new head coach was hired.”
In her position, Lewis recruited top LSU football players and engaged in alumni relations for more than a decade, according to the lawsuit.