Former Robinsons-May Worker Wins Back Pay

A Temecula man was awarded $73,680 in damages Thursday after arguing he was haunted by a false report of shoplifting that prevented him from finding a job for four years.

The attorney for plaintiff Bronti Kelly, 33, had sought back pay and $200,000 in punitive damages from the May Co.--parent company of Robinsons-May department store--and its security company, Stores Protective Assn.

But in the end, Kelly’s lawyer David Brown said he was satisfied with the jury’s award and felt the point had been made.

“I think this was a message from the jury that an individual’s reputation is important and has value,” said Brown. He believes the jury settled on a “fair figure.”

Kelly, 33, reported to police that his wallet was stolen in May 1990.

Later, he took a temporary sales job at Robinsons-May in Riverside. Store officials told Kelly they had information that he had shoplifted at one of their Los Angeles stores. After police determined Kelly’s identification from his stolen wallet had been used, they cleared him of the crime. But the shoplifting allegation remained on file with the Stores Protective Assn. until January 1995.

“The entire air of the trial was whether what happened to Mr. Kelly was done intentionally and with malice. We didn’t think so,” said jury foreman Mike Plaisance, 49, of Sylmar.

Plaisance said the jury therefore awarded no punitive damages, but fixed compensatory damages to cover Kelly’s lost wages.

Lawyers for the defendants had no comment after the weeklong trial held before Superior Court Judge David M. Schacter. Brown said he had received a $5,000 offer to settle the case.