Sep 17, 2007 1:08 pm US/Eastern
Thomas Accuser Defends Work In Harassment Trial
NEW YORK (AP) ―
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Knicks boss Isiah Thomas came face-to-face on Sept. 10 with the woman accusing him of sexual harassment.
AP
The former Knicks vice president at the center
of an explosive sexual harassment trial calmly fended off
assertions Monday that her job performance was lacking.
Anucha Browne Sanders is seeking $10 million in damages on her
claim that she was fired for accusing Knicks coach Isiah Thomas of
harassment.
During an agressive cross-examination, Madison Square Garden
attorney Ronald Green introduced a series of 2004-2005 e-mail
exchanges by Browne Sanders and various managers at the Garden,
including President Steve Mills.
"I want to stress that you are focused on more ridiculous
issues than I can handle," Mills replied to Browne Sanders' e-mail
asking about the order of the names in a media guide.
"Were you concerned that the relationship with Mr. Mills was
not as good as it had been?" Browne Sanders was asked. She replied
that she was not.
Greene noted that, in an e-mail to a friend, Browne Sanders
indicated that she would soon begin revising her resume. Opposing
lawyers apparently are trying to show that Browne Sanders was in a
power struggle, fearing her high-salaried position was slipping
away from her.
Browne Sanders, a former Northwestern basketball star, responded
that she had received a "glowing evaluation."
Another e-mail showed Browne Sanders had been criticized for
suggesting that Thomas personally hand-sign 4,500 letters to season
subscribers.
Green, using a testy tone, asked Browne Sanders whether that was
a sensible suggestion.
"Looking at it now, I don't think it was a good idea," she
replied, soft-spoken but looking comfortable.
Thomas, his shoulders square, leaned forward while listening to
her testimony.
Browne Sanders has said previously that Thomas repeatedly used
the terms "bitch" and "ho" to address her when complaining
about her attempts to involve him in promotions. Thomas, flanked at
the defense table by two female lawyers, has called the allegations
"outrageous."
In a June 2005 e-mail to Mills, enlarged on a screen for jurors,
Browne Sanders criticized Thomas.
"Why is it such an uncomfortable struggle to get him (Thomas)
to engage in the business of the team?" she wrote. "This is part
of Isiah's job, isn't it?"
After the jury of five women and three men left the courtroom,
U.S. District Judge Gerard Lynch expressed exasperation that the
case it taking longer than non-celebrity trials and asked the
lawyers to speed things up.
"I saw one juror nodding off this morning," said the judge.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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