Jury Awards Sexual Harassment Victims $1.1 Million

A jury has awarded eleven Kansas City Missouri women who were sexually harassed by their landlord.  The Justice Department sued Bobby Veal on behalf of eleven women who had rented apartments from him.  The Justice Department charged that Veal demanded sexual favors from female tenants, and evicted women who did not submit to his advances.  At trial, former residents testified that Veal engaged in unwanted verbal sexual advances and sexual touching, and that he asked for sexual favors in exchange for tenancy.  According to the Justice Department, most of the victims were low-income single women with limited housing opportunities.

            Veal’s wife, Jewel Veal, was also a defendant in the lawsuit.  The government alleged that she was aware of the harassment, but did not take any action to prevent it.

            The jury awarded the tenants compensatory and punitive damages totaling $1,102,804.  The individual damage awards ranged from $10,001 to $310,000.  The verdict is the largest ever obtained by the Justice Department in a case brought under the Fair Housing Act.  The government is also seeking a civil penalty and injunctive relief.