B.K.B., Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee v. Maui Police Department, County of Maui, County of Maui, Defendant-Appellee-Cross-Appellant

Plaintiff-appellant B.K.B. raises two issues on appeal: (1) whether appellant sufficiently exhausted administrative remedies on her statutory employment discrimination claims and (2) whether the trial court abused its discretion in failing to grant a mistrial where serious violations of Rule 412 of the Federal Rules of Evidence occurred. The Maui Police Department (“the Department”) and the County of Maui (“the County”) offered defense testimony, which the district court admitted, relating to appellant’s sexual practices and history. We agree with the appellant that the testimony should not have been admitted and was highly prejudicial. The County cross-appeals the district court’s award of sanctions as an abuse of discretion. We affirm the court’s imposition of sanctions. We also hold that Plaintiffs statutory claims of sexual harassment should not have been dismissed pre-trial. Accordingly, we reverse and remand for a new trial.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Plaintiffs filing of discrimination charges

Plaintiff, a 49-year old white female police officer, awoke one morning in April 1997 with heavy bleeding and subsequently collapsed while responding to a radio call in the course of her…