A bit of Missouri legal news:

Warrensburg Schools settle sexual abuse lawsuit by female athletes, will pay them $809,000

Nov 11, 2010, 10:57 PM

WARRENSBURG, Mo. – The sexual abuse lawsuit filed by six Warrensburg High School female athletes has been settled out of court, with the school district’s insurer agreeing to pay the girls $809,000….

….The girls’ attorney, Ronnie Podolefsky, told Digitalburg Thursday that while the girls were happy about the settlement, “It was never about the money. We never requested money.” It was about ethics and civil rights, she said.

This settlement says “We should be listening to our children,” Podolefsky said, and “We can stand up for what’s right.”

While the school district did not acknowledge any admission of guilt, liability or wrongdoing, Podolefsky said “The number ($809,000) speaks for itself. The settlement agreement says “…this settlement is made solely for the purpose of avoiding the expense of further litigation…”

[emphasis added]

$809,000.00 is a lot of money. It does speak for itself, don’t you think?

We first wrote about a part of this story:

Three steps behind, and to the right (January 25, 2008)

And last wrote about it:

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a few small tokens of our esteem (May 16, 2010)

Interestingly, in addition to Ronnie Podolefsky, the plaintiffs also had Roxanne Conlin representing them. Yes, that Roxanne Conlin.

Aaron Podolefsky has been selected as the next president of Buffalo State College in New York, “subject to approval by the SUNY Board of Trustees at its March 23 meeting in New York City.”

Mazel tov.

This is the fifty-third post in an ongoing series as we file Missouri Sunshine Law (RSMo 610) requests and investigate the non-renewal of the contract of University of Central Missouri President Aaron Podolefsky. Links to previous coverage are below the fold. BG and MB

Media coverage from Buffalo, New York:

Podolefsky picked to head Buffalo State College

By Jay Rey

News Staff Reporter

Updated: March 18, 2010, 7:44 am

Published: March 18, 2010, 9:38 am

… His separation from Central Missouri, however, created a bit of a stir on campus.

Despite a faculty petition to retain Podolefsky and a glowing letter of recommendation from the state’s higher-education commissioner, Central Missouri’s board of governors decided, in a 4-3 vote, not to renew his contract, which expires in June. The board publicly offered no explanation but praised his contributions.

“Boards change, and new members want to go in a different direction,” Podolefsky said during a phone interview Wednesday. “But I was very much affirmed by the response on campus from the faculty. That made me feel good about my five years.”

Podolefsky has been mentioned as a presidential candidate at a number of colleges, including Central Washington State, the University of Central Arkansas and Youngstown State University, before he eventually landed the job at Buffalo State…

From Buffalo State College:

…Dr. Podolefsky has an extensive and successful background in public higher education and currently serves as president of the University of Central Missouri. His biography and CV are available on the Buffalo State Web site. His wife, Ronnie Podolefsky, is a civil rights attorney and a very dynamic person, and we are pleased and proud to welcome her as well to the Buffalo State College community.

Dr. Podolefsky embraces the importance of our vital mission and core values, including outstanding education, research, service learning, access, and diversity. He is extremely bright and engaging and will be a forceful advocate for our college in SUNY and throughout the community, the state, and the country…

That’s quite a positive review. That’s definitely going to grate on one individual in particular.

Remember this radio broadcast?:

…I’m not the problem. No question about that. The problem’s gonna leave in June. That’s the problem. And it’ll be gone soon, we just have to wait. Okay….

Or this radio broadcast?:

…Throwin’ those darts, eventually one sticks on the board…

Yes, of course, applying for, interviewing at, and being offered a position as president of a University is like playing darts.

Or this radio broadcast?:

…Aaron Podolefsky. Out. We’ve talked about it for a long time….

….The, the thing that really upset me, that kind of got [garbled] going originally was, for years there was a Christmas tree lit at Selmo Park. Remember that?

[….]

Drive by. He stopped that. I mean I think every religion should be able to celebrate, uh, in their own way, but, I mean we do live in Warrensburg, Missouri. This is America. You know. Let’s bring that back. How ’bout that?

As if people are going to forget.

Our previous coverage of the issue:

Three steps behind, and to the right (January 25, 2008)

Three steps behind, and to the right, part 2 – a microcosm of our universe (September 21, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”? (October 15, 2009) (transcript of a portion of the live radio broadcast)

It wasn’t just about a tree (October 21, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: I heard it on the radio (October 21, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: let’s not get cut out of the will (October 22, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: $87.75 will get you one sheet of paper (October 23, 2009)



“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: They’re not playing hardball, they’re playing cat and mouse  (October 23, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: a cola and some scoreboards (October 24, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: a few more pieces of the puzzle? (October 28, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: your silence means consent (October 29, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: let’s not get cut out of the will, part 2 (October 30, 2009)

Old media irony impairment (October 30, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement?”: I heard it on the radio, part 2 (October 31, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: where everybody knows your name (October 31, 2009)

Methinks that someone is paying attention! (November 2, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: Bond, Stadium Bond (November 4, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: where everybody knows your name, part 2 (November 4, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: I heard it on the radio, part 3 (November 5, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: nothing succeeds like success (November 6, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: your Friday news dump (November 6, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: nothing exceeds like excess (November 7, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a grade for Accounting 101 (November 7, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: there ought to be a law (November 8, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: there’s gotta be a contract around here somewhere (November 9, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: there ought to be a law, part 2 (November 10, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: Garbo speaks! (November 12, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: the Kansas City Jewish Chronicle (November 13, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”? Follow the money and it reveals the timeline (November 14, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: the new president search consulting contract (November 18, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a march on a cold and rainy day (November 18, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: raise their voices (November 19, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: great moments in radio reporting (November 21, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: Oh, my! (December 3, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: It’s simple, really… (December 5, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: I do truly care about the success of our students (December 6, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: “…a wonderful relationship there we’re really proud of…” (December 7, 2009)

Oh brother, it’s time to convene another panel on blogger ethics… (December 8, 2009)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a lesson on how not to attempt damage control (January 26, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a lesson on how not to attempt damage control, part 2 (January 28, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: welcome to the party… (February 1, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: welcome to the party, four months late, part 2 (February 2, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: those people from Denmark, you know, the Dutch (February 3, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a conversation with the Muleskinner (February 6, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a simple question (February 8, 2010)

Find the Non-Employee Game! (February 8, 2010)(NYCMule)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a different choice of phrase would have made it all better (February 11, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: never mind the facts, here’s right wingnut talk radio (February 13, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: and we should give weight to your opinion… (February 18, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: fools for spin (February 20, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: fools rush in… (February 21, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: Who’s the more foolish… (February 25, 2010)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: a phone call from out of the blue (February 26, 2010)

HASSLER to PHILLIPS Connect-the-Dots Game! (February 27, 2010)(NYCMule)

“A Gentleman’s Agreement”?: project much? (February 28, 2010)

These things sometime happen when you afflict the comfortable (March 12, 2010)

This is a sad story about the perceived role of women in a small town. On the part of some. (Somehow I thought this would be a slow news week. It looks like I picked the wrong week to…)

Warrensburg, Missouri, population approximately 16,000, is the county seat and home of the University of Central Missouri. Whiteman Air Force Base, the primary base for the B-2 bomber, is 9 miles to the east of Warrensburg.

Aaron Podolefsky became the president of the University of Central Missouri in July 2005.

…President Podolefsky is married to Ronnie Lynn (Shapiro) Podolefsky, a well-respected attorney specializing in civil rights, employment law, and mediation…

Excellent – a smart, accomplished professional.

December 7, 2007

Former players sue Warrensburg district, coach for alleged abuse

By ALAN SCHER ZAGIER

Associated Press Writer

Six female students at Warrensburg High School and their parents have sued the school district and a girl’s basketball and softball coach over what they call a pattern of verbal abuse and sexual misconduct.

The students, identified individually only as Jane Doe in the lawsuit, say school officials dismissed their complaints and declined to investigate for more than one year – in part because of possible negative public reaction to another well-known coach getting in trouble. The school fired its football coach in 2006.

“They have ignored the complaints. They have not protected the kids,” said Warrensburg attorney Ronnie Podolefsky, who represents the students and their families. “It’s beyond belief the way they have not taken action…”

[emphasis added]

Then, this week, another part of the local story gets carried by media across the nation – except for the Warrensburg Daily Star-Journal. Even the student newspaper (a weekly) at the University of Central Missouri carried this:

Abuse claims divide small town

By Alan Scher Zagier

Associated Press Writer / January 18, 2008

…The teens have been called liars, bullies and even white trash (three of the players who have sued the white coach also are white, three are black). They’ve been insulted to their faces and on Facebook and MySpace pages. Their parents’ jobs have been threatened. And the involvement of their attorney, who also happens to be the wife of the University of Central Missouri’s president, has sparked a backlash that includes efforts to oust the college leader…

…The police officer whose daughter is part of the suit said that an opposing parent tried to get him fired. Another plaintiff’s parent, who runs a store in town, said some customers have stopped shopping at his place…

…By the estimation of Hough’s supporters, the college president’s wife is out of line. They want her to stop representing the players, and if that means firing her husband — Aaron Podolefsky — then so be it…

“…It’s nothing new when the disgruntled resort to the old stereotype of an uppity wife who doesn’t know her place,” Ronnie Podolefsky said. “My career is independent and separate from the university…”

[emphasis added]

“…They want her to stop representing the players, and if that means firing her husband… then so be it…” As if this type of intimidation would accomplish anything. Those individuals appear painfully ignorant of the legal system and the obligations of legal counsel.

Well, Ronnie Podolefsky is an attorney. She’s doing her job.

If it’s not even covered in the local paper, how can the town “be divided”? You think every one of the approximately 16,000 individuals in the ‘burg have taken a “side” on this, let alone have any awareness of what has transpired? The grapevine can only do so much…  

Let’s take a look at some other cases from the past:

Protecting the Rights at Home of Those Who Defend Freedom Abroad

…Mark is pursuing a complaint against his former employer because under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), a federal law, an employer can not discriminate if an employee is called into military active duty. Additionally, the state of Iowa has a Military Code that imposes criminal charges if an employer fires or denies leave to a Reservist who is ordered to temporary active duty.

His attorney, Ronnie Podolefsky, is outraged: “The men and women being activated and deployed to Iraq deserve the assurance that the jobs this takes them from will be there when they come home. It’s not only contemptible to fire someone called up to serve our nation, it’s against the law.”

[emphasis added]

That’s a noble enterprise, don’t you think?

Here’s another one:

Case Archive Subject: Greer v. Beck’s Pub & Grille et al., No. C03-2070 LRR (N.D. Iowa, Jan. 4, 2006)

Legal Momentum Role: Represented plaintiff.

Subject Matter: Right of victim to protection from employer retaliation for having obtained a restraining order against abusive boyfriend/coworker.

Legal Momentum filed this case on behalf of Antonette Greer, a woman who was fired from her job as a dishwasher the day after she obtained a protective order against her abusive co-worker/boyfriend.

This case resulted in the first-ever ruling by a court in Iowa allowing an employee to sue for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy based on allegations that she lost her job because she got a protective order.

While the district court dismissed additional sex discrimination claims – claims that were based on the fact that the employer fired our client, Ms. Greer, while continuing to employ her abuser, despite his criminal convictions arising from the abuse – the wrongful discharge claim made new law in Iowa. The case was subsequently resolved.

Legal Momentum was co-counsel in this case with Iowa attorney Ronnie Podolefsky, and subsequently Iowa attorney Paige Fiedler.

[emphasis added]

That’s my kind of legal counsel. She’s doing her job. She’s not supposed to walk three steps behind, and to the right.