Conejo Valley School District Fined Over Motion in Gomes Case

A federal court judge has fined the Conejo Valley Unified School District $2,050 for its attempt to remove from the state level a lawsuit against the district filed by former Thousand Oaks High football assistant Paul Gomes.

In his Feb. 12 decision, U.S. District Judge James M. Ideman said the district’s motion was submitted “for an improper purpose such as unnecessary delay or needless increase in costs of litigation,” and returned the case to a lower court.

The case will be heard in Ventura County Superior Court at a date to be determined.

In December, Gomes, 33, filed suit against the district in superior court, claiming he was forced to resign with two games left in the season over an incident in which he cursed a player.

Gomes, a 14-year Lancer walk-on assistant, claimed he was professionally damaged. He is seeking reinstatement and the removal of all documents related to his termination.

The district had sought to have the case dismissed on the grounds it was a frivolous suit. Ideman ruled there was no basis for the case to be heard in federal court and imposed sanctions against the district for the amount spent by Gomes on attorney’s fees.

Gomes could not be reached for comment.