(California) Transgender woman settles DMV suit

[alp227]

A transgender woman who went to the Department of Motor Vehicles in San Francisco to record her sex change - and then got a letter from a DMV clerk saying homosexual acts were "an abomination that leads to hell" - will receive a $55,000 legal settlement, her lawyers said Monday.

Attorneys said Amber Yust's settlement includes $40,000 from the state and $15,000 from Thomas Demartini, who was suspended with pay by the DMV shortly after the incident and quit his job in December.

"This suit promotes the privacy rights of all Californians by ensuring that confidential information retained by our government stays confidential," said attorney Christopher Dolan, who filed the Superior Court case in December.

The department also agreed to work with the Transgender Law Center on staff training, said Kristina Wertz, legal director of the center.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/08/15/BANN1KNNCS.DTL

[RandySF]

1. I can't believe the employee was only suspended.

[whistler162]

2. He was suspended when the allegations came to light and

then quit the job.

Should have made the clerk pay the whole thing or $40,000 and the state pay the $15,000.

[cutlassmama]

3. he should have been fired

[xchrom]

4. good for her. nt

[Name removed]

5. Deleted message

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[Sirveri]

6. Not sure why the state bears so much responsibility for a wayward psycho.

Maybe they'll make saner hiring decisions in the future though.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

7. Failure to supervise and they are the deep pocket