LOS ANGELES - Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis has publicly responded to a sexual harassment suit filed against him and his companies by former Girls sales rep Tranae Hammond.
Through his attorney, Francis issued the following statement yesterday:
"While Mantra Films cannot at this time independently verify or contradict many of the items alleged in the lawsuit filed by Tranae Hammond, we want to make clear that there are absolutely no allegations that Joe Francis was involved in any harassment or other wrongdoing. In fact, the lawsuit doesn't even allege that Ms. Hammond ever met Mr. Francis.
"Mantra Films employs more than 400 people in five separate locations in the Los Angeles Area. Mantra Films has stringent policies against sexual harassment and provides a safe, professional and compliant work environment for all of its employees. The Company plans to vigorously investigate and defend the allegations made by Ms. Hammond."
Hammond's lawsuit claims that she was "the victim of repeated acts of sexual harassment by a supervisor named Ron and was fired after coming forward," the Los Angeles Times reported.
While the lawsuit does not charge Francis with sexual harassment, Hammond claims that he mismanaged the company and ignored the supervisor's alleged actions.
The suit also seeks class action status for claims including failure to pay overtime, failure to provide required meal and rest periods, and failure to maintain required records, the Times reported.
Francis is currently in jail in Reno, awaiting trial on federal tax evasion charges.
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