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Dunwoody City Council approves agreement over ex-officer's sexual harassment claims

By FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
Updated  August 28, 2024 10:23am EDT
Dunwoody
FOX 5 Atlanta

DUNWOODY, Ga. - A settlement is in the works for a former Dunwoody police officer who says the city's police department retaliated against him for exposing his sexual harassment by his supervisor.

On Monday, the Dunwoody City Council voted 6-1 to approve an agreement to resolve the dispute.

The vote came after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Atlanta District agreed that Brian Castellanos claim against his former employer had merit.

According to the letter, which was obtained by Rough Draft Atlanta, the agency said that the Dunwoody Police Department retaliated against the former officer after he made his complaint "by including evidence that he provided to support his allegations of harassment into an investigative report, which was released to the public."

"The record supports a finding that the action of releasing the evidence to the public without balancing the need for redaction and/or the prudence of privacy would dissuade a reasonable person from engaging in protected activity," the letter said. 

In June, a DeKalb County jury awarded Castellanos $180,000 in a civil case against former Lt. Fidel Espinoza. The City of Dunwoody and its police department were initially named, but were removed from the case.

Former Dunwoody Police Lt. Felix Espinoza (Dunwoody Police Department)

As part of his complaint, Castellanos claimed that Espinoza sexually harassed him by taking photos of him using a urinal without his consent and demanded sexual favors and intimate photos in exchange for more time off from work.

The lawsuit also claimed that Espinoza sent harassing messages to Castellanos' wife.

Espinoza, then one of the faces of the police department, resigned from the force in 2020 after being investigated for sexual harassment and professional misconduct. In the report that led to the lieutenant's firing, the EEOC found that the evidence was not sufficiently redacted.

Dunwoody leaders did not discuss damages, but sources say a settlement is on the way.