Griffin v. City of Opa-Locka
Eleventh Circuit
261 F.3d 1295 (2001)
City manager Earnie Neal (defendant) sexually harassed water-department billing clerk Griffin (plaintiff) with degrading comments and repeated advances from his first day on the job; after Griffin resigned, Neal insisted on driving her home from a work function and raped her there. A jury found Neal sexually harassed Griffin as a custom or policy of the City of Opa-Locka (defendant), that Neal raped Griffin under color of law, and that the City was deliberately indifferent in hiring Neal, awarding Griffin $2 million; Neal and the City appealed, with the City arguing it couldn't be liable for Neal's harassment or assault as a matter of law.
Whether a municipality may be held liable under 42 U.S.C. section 1983 for an employee's sexual assault absent a specific jury finding that the municipality had a custom or practice of tolerating such assaults, as distinct from a finding of a custom of sexual harassment generally.