genderberg.com - Maid who won suit against Sony executive decries slavery

By LAURA WIDES, Associated Press Writer Sacramento Bee September 3, 2004

LOS ANGELES - A Filipino woman who won $825,000 in a lawsuit claiming a Hollywood executive and his wife enslaved her said the case should be a warning to others.

Nena Ruiz, 60, is a former schoolteacher from the Philippines who worked as a domestic servant for James Jackson and his wife, Elizabeth. Jackson is vice president of legal affairs for Sony Pictures Entertainment.

In a lawsuit filed last year, Ruiz claimed the Jacksons took away her passport and paid her $300 for a year's work at the couple's Culver City condominium. She said Elizabeth Jackson also slapped her and pulled her hair repeatedly.

The couple have denied the allegations, and their lawyer said they are considering appealing.

Ruiz said she often worked 18 hours a day and was forced to do strange household chores such as heating chicken nuggets and cutting up bananas or pears for the couple's two dogs while she was fed leftovers and slept in a dog bed.

"I want others who are enslaving people to know that they could have the same future as the Jacksons," Ruiz said Thursday at a news conference.

A jury last week awarded her back wages and punitive damages, finding the Jacksons liable for involuntary servitude, false imprisonment, invasion of privacy, negligence and fraud. Jurors also found Elizabeth Jackson liable for assault and battery.

The Jacksons threatened to call the police and immigration authorities if Ruiz left and told her that she would be locked up and would never see her family again, said Dan Stormer, one of Ruiz's attorneys.

"Slavery still exists, and I want to tell victims they should not tolerate it and should not be afraid to seek help," Ruiz said.

The Jacksons filed for bankruptcy protection days before the lawsuit trial began. Their attorneys have asked the judge to overturn the punitive damage award and indicated they may appeal the entire case.

"This is a case of credibility when there are no witnesses. The plaintiff says one thing, and my client denied it all and still denies it," attorney John Daniels said.

He said Sony suspended Jackson on Monday, adding, "It is my understanding that he will be terminated."

Sony Pictures spokeswoman Susan Tick declined to comment.

Ruiz, who is seeking a waiver to remain in the United States, has become certified as a nursing assistant.

The U.S. Department of Justice estimates more than 15,000 people are trafficked to the United States each year, many to work as sex slaves or in restaurants or domestic positions.

Los Angeles, New York and Miami are the top three destinations, said Kay Buck, executive director of the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking, which has helped Ruiz become certified as a nursing assistant.