Freed Thai Workers File Lawsuit : Labor: Charges by 64 former sweatshop laborers include involuntary servitude, false imprisonment and civil rights violations.

Sixty-four Thai garment workers who told authorities they were held against their will in an El Monte sweatshop filed a civil lawsuit against their alleged captors Tuesday, seeking several hundred million dollars from 11 factory operators whom they accused of involuntary servitude, false imprisonment, racketeering, assault, and civil rights and labor law violations.

Meanwhile, the federal judge presiding over a separate criminal case filed against nine alleged sweatshop ringleaders excused herself to avoid any apparent conflict of interest. U.S. District Judge Lourdes G. Baird was the U.S. attorney in Los Angeles in 1992 when federal prosecutors declined to seek a search warrant to raid the converted apartment complex where authorities say Thai immigrants were lured with the promise of a better life, only to toil long hours for subminimum wages under the threat of armed guards.

A coalition of attorneys representing the workers announced their federal lawsuit at a news conference attended by a handful of the freed laborers.

“We will not be silent in the face of exploitation . . . and we will assert our rights in the workplace and in the courtroom,” said Julie Su, staff attorney at the Asian Pacific American Legal Center. “Today, they are here to fight back.”

The suit aims to collect compensatory and punitive damages, including all unpaid minimum-wage and overtime pay, from the sweatshop operators--an amount totaling more than $100 million dollars, according to attorneys.

U.S. and California state officials also have filed lawsuits seeking $5 million in back wages due the workers, who were freed in an Aug. 2 raid by a state-led task force.

While it is tough to put a price on freedom, the lawyers said, they decided on $10,000 compensatory damages for each day of freedom denied to each Thai worker named in the suit. Many of those who agreed to have their names on the suit had cut and sewed under threat of violence for as long as three years, the attorneys said.

The coalition also said the lawsuit is intended to send a message to garment manufacturers and retailers that accountability is a must in an industry with a history of exploiting workers.

Three of the laborers expressed their gratitude Tuesday through an interpreter.

“I don’t have anything to show my appreciation and gratitude,” said a 34-year-old woman, who began sobbing after she left the microphone. “All I can do is say, ‘Thank you.’ ”