AG Rokita: “Indiana hires & promotes based on merit”

Submitted by Office of AG Todd Rokita

After a federal jury trial cleared the State of Indiana of racial discrimination charges brought by a state employee, Attorney General Todd Rokita praised the work of his litigation team.

Rokita

“Indiana hires and promotes based on merit,” AG Rokita said. “Kudos to our team for making that fact abundantly clear throughout the course of this four-year legal battle and two-day jury trial.”

The plaintiff, an employee of the State of Indiana Office of Technology, filed suit alleging that IOT failed to promote him because of his race. The employee, who is black, applied for a new position with the agency in May of 2019. The position had already been offered in April, however, to another employee, who is white.

“The chain of events showed clearly that IOT supervisors did not pass over the plaintiff because of his race,” AG Rokita said. “Rather, even before the plaintiff applied, IOT supervisors carefully evaluated the distinct attributes of staff members to achieve the best possible match for the open position.”

AG Rokita specifically thanked Deputy Attorneys General Brandyn Arnold, Gustavo Jimenez and Jake Zurschmiede – along with their supervisors, Chief Counsel of Litigation Patricia Erdmann and Section Chief of Government Litigation Adrienne Pope.

The team’s work in this case produced an estimated savings to the state of $200,000 in damages, fees and costs.

Through successful trial advocacy, motion practice and negotiations, the litigation team’s work during AG Rokita’s administration has saved Hoosier taxpayers millions.