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Lt. Col. Gay, PSS enter settlement deal
Judge dismisses Gay’s discrimination lawsuit
The Public School System has entered into a confidential settlement agreement in the discrimination lawsuit filed by Lt. Col. Robert L. Gay against PSS for allegedly harassing him in order to replace him as director of Army Instruction of the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps.
With the settlement deal, U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona on Thursday dismissed Gay’s lawsuit with prejudice.
Dismissal with prejudice means Gay could no longer re-open the case.
Manglona said the court retains jurisdiction over the case in order to enforce the provisions of the settlement agreement.
Each party will bear its own attorneys’ fees and costs.
The parties, through their counsels, agreed to the dismissal of the case.
Attorney Colin M. Thompson is counsel for Gay. Attorneys Tiberius Mocanu and Adam Hardwicke are counsel for PSS.
The parties informed the court on Thursday that Gay agrees to dismiss all his claims against PSS and 10 unnamed co-defendants.
The dismissal is to be construed as broadly as possible—to encompass every claim and defense that was asserted and could have been asserted by the parties.
The stipulation is based on the confidential settlement agreement between Gay and PSS, which settled all claims and defenses in this case.
Gay, through Thompson, sued PSS for harassment based on race and retaliation.
Gay asked the court to order PSS to pay him an appropriate amount of back pay with prejudgment interest plus an appropriate amount of front pay.
Gay asked the court to hold PSS liable for his medical expenses incurred as a result of the hostile work environment, plus compensatory and punitive damages.
According to Thompson in the complaint, Gay served as the director of Army Instruction of JROTC for PSS from February 2007 through February 2012.
Gay returned to the CNMI and again served as DAI in October 2012 until January 2016.
Thompson said the director of JROTC United States Army Cadet Command confirms all DAIs.
A DAI must successfully serve for two years as a Senior Army Instructor before the USACC will consider a candidate for a DAI position.
