Re-Trial of Workplace Harassment at the Tesla Factory in Fremont, CA Results in $3,175,000 Verdict

Owen Diaz, represented by Lawrence Organ of the California Civil Rights Law Group, was an elevator operator at the Tesla Factory in Fremont, California. Throughout his time there, he was called the N-word over sixty times by two supervisors and also by other employees. He saw racist graffiti including the N-word and swastikas in the bathrooms and a picaninny drawing was left for him at his work station.

The first trial on this matter resulted in a $136.9 million verdict, $6.9 million in emotional distress and $130 million in punitive damages, but the judge reduced the verdict to $15 million. The client elected to re-try damages. The retrial resulted in $175,000 in emotional distress and $3 million in punitive damages. This was a damages only retrial of a historic jury verdict. The plaintiff is seeking a new trial based on attorney misconduct by defense counsel.