Two civil lawsuits have been filed in Los Angeles by two women who allege that Patrick Smith, formerly senior VP of print production in the studio’s marketing department, sexually harassed the women.
One of the lawsuits describes sexually inappropriate text messages as well as overt behavior such as grabbing the woman’s breast. In January 2017, at the Paramount office, Smith “forcibly pushed Plaintiff into a storage room, then shut and locked the door behind him, rendering himself and the key the sole means of Plaintiff’s escape. There, he aggressively kissed her and shockingly proceeded to digitally penetrate her without her consent. Moments after returning to his office, while Plaintiff attempted to regain composure at her desk, Defendant Smith sent her a chilling message: ‘That was fun,’” per the lawsuit.
The harassment lawsuits describe an out of control executive that believed himself to be above the law and above any norms of propriety in the workplace. Unfortunately, sexual harassment in the workplace is more common that you would think and this is typical behavior of someone who believes he is above the law and can do whatever he wants to subordinates.
Smith resigned from Paramount Pictures earlier this year following an investigation into allegations of misconduct.
If you or a loved one have been a victim of workplace sexual harassment, please contact me for a free initial consultation.
