Jones to Pursue Suit in Wake of Clinton’s Settlement Rejection

The woman who claims she was sexually harassed by President Clinton said Friday his rejection of a settlement offer would force her to take the matter to trial.

“I am sorry that Bill Clinton did not accept my settlement offer,” said Paula Corbin Jones, a former state government worker in Arkansas. “It provided him with a chance to end the case without having to admit his own conduct. At the same time, it would have restored me my reputation. No payment of money was ever required.”

Jones, who claims Clinton sexually propositioned her in a Little Rock, Ark., hotel room in May, 1991, when he was governor of Arkansas, sued the President earlier this year for violation of her civil rights.

Clinton, through his attorneys, has denied the accusations and has sought a stay of the proceedings until his term in office expires.

According to Jones’ lawyer, Gilbert Davis, of Fairfax, Va., Clinton could have avoided the lawsuit with an apology saying: “I am sorry for the untrue assertions which have been made about (Jones), and which have adversely affected her character, good name and reputation.”

A spokesman at the offices of Robert Bennett, Clinton’s personal lawyer, said Friday that Bennett’s response to the settlement offer was “basically, no.”

Jones, who has largely avoided the media since going public with her claims, appeared briefly at a news conference in Hollywood on Friday to read a statement to reporters about the failed settlement negotiations.

The Arkansas native, who now lives in Southern California, declined to answer questions.