Sexual harassment case involving California treasurer settled

The state reached a $350,000 settlement agreement with a former employee who accused California Treasurer Fiona Ma of sexual harassment.

The accusations came to light in 2021, when Judith Blackwell, the former executive director for the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, filed the lawsuit alleging that the treasurer walked around naked in a shared hotel room and apartment in Sacramento and climbed into bed with her one night.

The state’s Justice Department released news about the settlement agreement on Thursday, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

 A spokesperson in the Attorney General’s Office couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Ma, who was sued as an individual and a state official, was represented by the California Department of Justice and by private attorneys.

In her dismissal motion, Ma denied the allegations and said it was Blackwell who had entered Ma’s bedroom. She denied touching Blackwell and said the four incidents “were not sexual” but instead were “random, isolated incidents that do not constitute sexual harassment.”

Ma, who was elected to a second term as treasurer in November 2022, is running for lieutenant governor.

All along, Ma has said the claims were the baseless accusations of a disgruntled employee, adding in a statement she rejected several prior settlement agreements, because she wanted her day in court.

“From day one, I said this was a frivolous lawsuit filed by a disgruntled employee who fabricated claims in an attempt to embarrass me in hopes of receiving millions of dollars in a settlement,” Ma said. “After three years of delay, I have been completely vindicated.”

Blackwell, who at one point oversaw two key housing finance agencies, made the allegations in a lawsuit filed three years ago in state court in Sacramento. Blackwell said Ma fired her without providing any reason and also claimed the treasurer had terminated other senior Black employees.

If it were a “me too,” situation, Ma said, more than a year after the allegations came to light, more people would have come forward with similar allegations, and they have not. Ma said during her run for a second term as treasurer in 2022 that the matter would not be resolved before the election, because she wanted it to go to trial.

She sought a dismissal of the claims last year, but was unsuccessful, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Blackwell’s attorney also declared victory following announcement of the settlement agreement, according to news reports. He claims if there weren’t some basis for the lawsuit, the state would not have agreed to pay the settlement.

“Ms. Blackwell took a stand and fought for what was right, as there should always be zero tolerance for sexual harassment,” Blackwell’s attorney Waukeen McCoy said. “She ended this chapter of her life with an amicable resolution and looks forward to a better workplace environment in the future.”

Ma was represented by Sacramento attorney Ognian Gavrilov. Gavrilov said he and Ma had rebuffed multiple attempts by the plaintiff to settle the case.

“This is a complete victory for the treasurer,” he noted. “We were ready to have the truth be brought to light in the courtroom, but the attorneys for the plaintiff clearly did not want a trial and instead dropped all of their causes of action against Treasurer Ma.”