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Kings faces legal issues over former director’s accusation of illegal termination following sexual harassment report

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A former staff of the Sacramento Kings have filed a legal lawsuit against the said franchise for an unjust termination.

Sydney Haydel, an ex-director of operations for the Stockton Kings and player development coordinator for Sacramento, have submitted a lawsuit, claiming that she was illegally removed from position after filing a sexual harassment report against another member of the club.

From the lawsuit testimonies of Haydel compiled by Jake Abbott of Sacramento Business Journal, former Stockton assistant Akachi Okugo “made numerous unwelcome advances” on the after-dinner party of the Kings during last year’s NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Haydel reported this issue to Paul Johnson, general manager of the Stockton Kings and vice president of player development for the Sacramento Kings. She claimed that she wanted to evade a retaliation and pushed Johnson, who has the authority, to escalate her complaint.

Few days later, Haydel was called by Stacy Wegzyn, the team’s senior vice president of human resources. Wegzyn stated that the complaint need not be further escalated, where Haydel meanwhile requested from the organization to conduct an anti-sexual harassment training for the members and staff.

Haydel claimed that the issue against Okugo went unaddressed and her request to implement a sexual harassment prevention training didn’t happen.

“Because defendants failed to implement a sexual harassment training program or take steps to address plaintiff’s safety concerns on and off the road, plaintiff experienced serious emotional distress which interfered with her ability to do her job,” the lawsuit provides.

Okugo’s tenure with the franchise ended in December 2021 due to unknown reason, wherein Haydel alleged that he was dismissed by the Kings.

Haydel further detailed that she received unwanted attention and intimidation from a particular team staff, in which she also filed to the club.

Last April 11, based on the filed lawsuit, she was informed by both Wegzyn and Sac-town general manager Monte McNair that her time in the franchise had ended.

Per Abbott, Haydel is looking to gain general, exemplary and punitive damages, recovery of medical expenses and incidental losses, and costs associated with filing suit from the legal case.

Both parties are set to meet and discuss the probe on Feb. 24, 2023.

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