Allred: Don't Give Filner a Cash ‘Gift’ to Go Away

Originally posted 11:17 a.m. Updated 2:13 p.m. Thursday with comments from attorney Gloria Allred.

The lawyer for the woman who sued Mayor Bob Filner and the city of San Diego said Thursday she has not been provided with details of a proposed agreement reached after three days of mediation, and that the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by his ex-communications director is not settled.

At a news conference, Gloria Allred urged the City Council not to authorize the payment of any money to the mayor in exchange for his anticipated resignation.

On Wednesday, City Attorney Jan Goldsmith announced a settlement was reached in the talks overseen by retired federal Judge Lawrence Irving. The deal is scheduled to be presented to and considered by the City Council on Friday.

But Allred said the sexual harassment litigation filed on behalf of Irene McCormack Jackson against Filner and the city of San Diego was not settled.

"We have no settlement of our lawsuit at this time," the Los Angeles- based attorney said.

McCormack Jackson was the first woman to publicly accuse the mayor of sexual harassment and so far is the only alleged victim to file a lawsuit.

The city subsequently filed a cross-complaint against Filner in an effort to recover any financial damages when McCormack Jackson's lawsuit is resolved.

Allred's remarks raise the possibility that the deal reached in mediation will only affect the city's portion of the lawsuit.

"We do not know the details of the reported deal and we have not approved it," Allred said. "We are therefore concerned that the City Council may be voting on this deal in a vacuum, and its term may contain terms that we and the taxpayers would find abhorrent."

Allred called for the terms of the agreement to be vetted publicly before the City Council approves it.

Since the council members have to approve the deal, it appears the terms include a payment of some form to Filner, she said.

She called for the mayor to resign without conditions.

If he does resign, Council President Todd Gloria would become interim mayor. A special election would be held within 90 days. If no single candidate receives over 50 percent of the votes, then a runoff would be held between the top two vote-getters.

Some reports indicated that as part of  the negotiated settlement, in exchange for Filner's resignation the city would foot the bill for at least at portion of any damages awarded in a lawsuit filed against him and the city by one of the mayor's accusers.

"The City Council has not heard of this proposal and our process at City Hall as well as the mediation process requires that we maintain the confidentiality of the proposal until they have heard of it," Goldsmith said. "This is the process we follow. Any rumors you hear about the proposal you may deem to be untrue."

-City News Service