Hartford, CTESPN is facing a wrongful termination lawsuit from a former production assistant after a sex scandal with Major League Baseball commentator Steve Phillips led to her dismissal from the sports network.
Brooke Hundley alleges that ESPN was willing to end its internal investigation of the incident after she and Phillips agreed to resolve the issue through a settlement agreement requiring that they avoid contact with each other except when necessary to complete their respective jobs.
Hundley had been assured by an HR representative that the incident was behind them and she continued performing her typical job duties until a tell-all article appeared in the New York Post a month later. The article featured a quote from Philips claiming that Hundley had pursued him, equating the scenario to "a Fatal Attraction freakout."
The production assistant refuted the claims to ESPN headquarters, revealing lurid text messages that supported her argument. Despite this, Hundley was placed on administrative leave and fired shortly after for "failing to fully participate in the investigation."
Hundley claims that ESPN defamed her with these allegations and has asked that the investigative files be released, which the sports network has not yet done in spite of a state law that requires that documents relating to an employee's dismissal be made available upon request.
"If their investigation had nothing to do with Brooke being fired then why was she fired?" asked Hundley's attorney, Richard E. Hayber. "If it was the basis for her termination, then why are they not handing over the investigative files as the law requires?"
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