GALAEI to host open house
GALAEI: Queer Latin@ Social Justice is inviting the community into its new space.
The organization will host an open house from 5:30-9 p.m. Aug. 25 at 149 W. Susquehanna Ave. The agency moved into the North Philly locale in the spring, a change that executive director Elicia Gonzales said will allow the agency to “gain a more in-depth look into the needs and resources” of its constituents.
GALAEI will have information about its programming at the event and will offer tours of the new space. Light refreshments will be served.
“We hope that people will be as excited about our new home as we have been so far,” Gonzales said. “We want people to feel at home, to feel like they are part of the GALAEI familia and to learn more about how we are working for and in community.”
For more information, visit www.galaei.org.Â
— Jen Colletta
Benefits case settled for $35K
The lawsuit of Bradley A. Ankney, a gay man who claimed his employer wrongfully denied him domestic-partnership benefits, was settled last month for $35,000.
Ankney contended the Allegheny Intermediate Unit violated his civil rights when refusing to offer him the benefits, including health-care coverage for his male partner.
AIU is an educational-services provider located near Pittsburgh, where Ankney is employed as a math teacher.
“[T]he Ankney litigation was settled for a total of $35,000, including all attorney’s fees and costs through our insurance carrier, with no admission of wrongdoing or violation of any statutes or regulations on the part of the Allegheny Intermediate Unit,” said William. C. Andrews, an attorney for AIU, in an email.
The case had been pending in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court for about two years, prior to being settled July 15, according to court records.
An attorney for Ankney couldn’t be reached for comment.
Settlement conference slated in cop antibias case
A settlement conference has been scheduled in the antibias case of N. Melville Jones, an openly gay Philadelphia police officer.
Jones filed suit against the city in 2013, seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages.
The officer claims that a supervisor outed him throughout the police department, triggering pervasive harassment and discrimination against him.
The settlement conference is set for 1:30 p.m. Sept. 2 in Courtroom 243 of City Hall, with Common Pleas Judge Idee C. Fox presiding.
If the case isn’t settled, jury selection is set to begin 10 a.m. Oct. 26 in Courtroom 243 of City Hall, with Fox presiding.
Neither side had a comment for this update.
Deadline extended in ADA challenge
A federal judge has extended a deadline for both sides in the Kate Blatt antibias case to supplement their positions on the Americans with Disabilities Act’s exclusion of gender-identity disorder as a protected disability.
Initially, U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Leeson Jr. said the supplemental briefs were due Aug. 14, but after both sides requested a deadline extension, Leeson set a new deadline of Aug. 21.
The judge seeks the supplemental briefs because the U.S. Department of Justice is urging him to avoid ruling on the ADA challenge, according to court records.
Blatt, a Pottsville trans woman, is suing Cabela’s Retail Inc. for job discrimination.
She claims Cabela’s discriminated against her on the basis of her disability — gender dysphoria — by denying her access to a female restroom and a female name tag.
Part of Blatt’s lawsuit challenges the ADA’s exclusion of gender-identity disorder as a protected disability. She contends that Congress acted unconstitutionally 25 years ago when enacting the exclusion.
Cabela’s is located in Hamburg and specializes in outdoor sports items. Blatt worked there as a seasonal stocker between September 2006-March 2007.
The ADA protects persons with disabilities from discrimination in private employment, public accommodations and governmental services.
Request pending in police-brutality case
Luis A. Berrios 3d, a bisexual man who alleges anti-LGBT misconduct by Philadelphia police officers, wants a jury to hear about prior instances of alleged misconduct by the officers.
Berrios is suing Officer Michael Gentile for allegedly using excessive force when arresting him during a domestic disturbance in December 2010. He’s also suing Officer Robert Taverez and Det. Joseph Newbert for allegedly standing by and facilitating the excessive force.
Berrios contends police were motivated by homophobia, claiming that slurs and taunts such as “faggot” were hurled at him during the incident.
In recent court filings, attorneys for Berrios asked that witnesses be allowed to testify at trial about alleged incidents of prior misconduct by the defendants.
As of presstime, U.S. Magistrate Judge Lynne A. Sitarski hadn’t ruled on the request.
Michael R. Miller, an attorney for the city, declined to comment for this update.
Jury selection is set to begin 10:30 a.m. Oct. 13 in Courtroom 3-E of the U.S. Courthouse, 601 Market St.
Man with cerebral palsy will give deposition
Joseph Evasew, a man with cerebral palsy whose brother committed suicide allegedly after sexual molestation by a Scoutmaster, will give a deposition in a lawsuit related to the incident.
Evasew’s mother, Patricia, is suing the Boy Scouts of America and a local affiliate, the BSA Chester County Council, for more than $50,000 in damages.
Her son, Thomas, committed suicide in 2012, after allegedly being sexually molested by Charles “Chris” Morris, a former Scoutmaster at the BSA Chester County Council.
Morris denies the allegations.
Because of Joseph Evasew’s condition, and attorneys initially declined to produce him for a deposition. But after BSA attorneys protested, both sides agreed that Joseph would give a deposition on Aug. 26, according to court records.
Neither side had a comment for this update.
— Timothy Cwiek