Pasadena Job Suit Settled for $129,500

Pasadena city officials have agreed to pay Cheryl Ward $129,500 plus lawyers’ fees to settle her lawsuit alleging that the City Council violated her civil rights when they withdrew their offer of the city attorney’s job after her bankruptcy filings came to light.

Ward, an assistant Los Angeles city attorney, accepted the job offer in February 1997. But it was withdrawn six weeks later after questions were raised about two bankruptcies. Ward sued in April.

In a statement issued Friday, the city said “race and sex did not play any role whatsoever in the decision.” (Ward would have been Pasadena’s first African American city attorney.) “However, all council members regret personal information about Ms. Ward was reported by the press during the selection process, and regret any harm such disclosures may have caused her.”

The statement also called Ward a “highly qualified attorney and dedicated public servant.”