Former Napa County Deputy District Attorney Jose Rossi and his legal team from Siegel, LeWitter & Malkani, in front of Department G, Napa.Superior Court. Pictured, from left, are, Jody LeWitter, Rossi, Jonathan Siegel and Jean Krasilnikoff. (Courtesy Photo)Former Napa County Prosecutor Wins $570K Verdict in Discrimination Suit
In a 9-3 decision, a Napa County jury found the county had discriminated against a former assistant deputy district attorney after he sought accommodations for disabilities.
March 01, 2018 at 05:36 PM
2 minute read
A Napa County jury hit the county with a verdict of more than half a million dollars this week in a case where a former county prosecutor claimed he was fired because he asked his superiors to accommodate his disabilities.
Jose Rossi spent more than 22 years as an assistant deputy district attorney in Napa County before he was fired in December 2014. Rossi sued the county in July 2015, claiming that he was discriminated against because of his age, his disabilities and his endorsement of a candidate running against then-incumbent District Attorney Gary Lieberstein.
Rossi claimed that Lieberstein and two of his managers, including current DA Allison Haley, who previously served as Lieberstein's chief deputy, began targeting him after Rossi asked for accommodations—first for voice recognition software because of his carpal tunnel syndrome and then for bathroom accommodations during his treatment for cancer.
In a 9-3 decision handed down Tuesday, a Napa County jury found the county had discriminated against Rossi because of his disabilities and that he was fired for insisting on workplace accommodations—protected activity under California's Fair Employment and Housing Act. Jurors awarded Rossi $470,081 for past economic losses and $100,000 for future losses.
Rossi's lawyer, Jody LeWitter of Siegel, LeWitter & Malkani in Oakland, said that verdict sends a message that everyone—even local prosecutors—can be held liable when they fail to provide reasonable accommodations to sick or injured workers.
Her client, LeWitter said, “had health-wise a difficult year and there were many ways to show a little sympathy and kindness—and they didn't.”
Napa County spokeswoman Kristi Jourdan said the county was aware of the verdict and disagreed with it. “There are post-trial motions being considered that preclude us from talking further about this case,” she said in an emailed statement.
The county was represented at trial by outside counsel from Jones & Dyer in Sacramento. Name partner Gregory Dyer didn't immediately respond to a voicemail message Thursday.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Apple Agrees to Pay $95 Million Settlement in Siri Voice Assistant Privacy Class Action
Anthropic Agrees to 'Guardrails' for Its AI Training to Protect Copyrighted Lyrics Pending Fight Over Fair Use
5 minute read
Texas Insurer Slaps Hinshaw & Culbertson With Legal Mal Claim Over $11 Million Personal Injury Jury Award
3 minute read
US Courts Announce Closures in Observance of Jimmy Carter National Mourning Day
2 minute readTrending Stories
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
