“Trapped in a Car While She Had Sex”

Grammy Award-winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion, whose real name is Megan Pete, and her record company Roc Nation are in legal hot water after a federal judge ruled that a workplace harassment and discrimination suit filed against her by former cameraman Emilio Garcia will go forward. The April 2024 complaint includes a laundry list of allegations of sexual misconduct, fat shaming, and retaliation. Megan’s reps have vehemently denied all allegations.

On July 2nd, the U.S. District Court Judge Gregory H. Woods granted substantial aspects of Garcia’s case, specifically those concerning claims for a hostile work environment due to the longevity of his and Megan’s working relationship.

Harassment and Hostile Work Environment Claims

Garcia was Megan’s cameraman from 2018 to 2023. He initially filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court. In documents obtained by USA Today and Billboard, Garcia recounts a 2022 Ibiza, Spain, business trip in which Garcia was allegedly trapped in a moving vehicle as Megan engaged in sex with another woman before him. Garcia, gay himself, claims the experience left him completely uncomfortable, triggering, and unprofessional at work.

Other than that one time, Garcia alleges he was repeatedly fat-shamed and belittled. He claims Megan verbally harassed him and then threatened him, “Don’t ever talk about what you saw.” These exchanges, the lawsuit alleges, made his work so intolerable that it made his job untenable.

When Garcia complained to his bosses about his treatment, he says, he was punished. His hours were cut, his salary reduced, and ultimately, he was fired. He also says that he was blacklisted for more work in the industry for speaking out.

Megan’s Team Denies Allegations, Calls Cameraman “A Con Artist”

Megan Thee Stallion’s attorneys have forcefully pushed back against the suit. In a release to Billboard, Megan’s attorney, Alex Spiro, labeled the lawsuit a shameless money grab.

“This is an employment claim for money, with no sexual harassment claim filed and with salacious accusations to attempt to embarrass her. We will deal with this in court.”

While Megan herself has not come forward publicly since the judge’s decision, she has called Garcia a “con artist,” framing the suit as an effort to extort payment instead of pursuing justice.

Court’s Ruling: Hostile Work Environment Claim Will Proceed

Judge Woods’ ruling focused on the probability of Garcia’s core argument that he was subjected to poor working conditions based on his sexual orientation. In particular, Woods determined that Garcia’s account of what happened in the SUV accident in Ibiza was enough to create a reasonable inference of discrimination.

Woods, in his ruling, said, “Plaintiff asks the court to draw the inference that ‘Pete would not have engaged in group sex with other women in front of a heterosexual male’; that ‘Pete felt comfortable engaging in group sex with other women in frontofplaintiff because of plaintiff’s sexuality and gender.’ This is not an unreasonable inference to draw from the facts alleged.”

Woods ultimately concluded that Garcia had “plausibly pleaded” that his in-work treatment was connected to his gay status.

The court, though, rejected Garcia’s retaliation claims, including those over pay reductions and blacklisting claims, as lacking evidence at this point in the case to support them.

Garcia’s Legal Team Hopeful

Even in the partial dismissal, Garcia’s attorney, Ron Zambrano, remains committed to the case. During an interview with Billboard, Zambrano stated, “We have plenty of facts after fourteen depositions we’ve taken to get the facts in we need. I’m sure.”

His remarks suggest that Garcia’s attorneys believe that the evidence they’ve gained through discovery will be sufficient to support the allegations of discrimination when the case is heard.

With the court now allowing the case to proceed, everyone will be waiting to see how both parties present their case and whether Garcia’s claims of a biased and hostile workplace will hold up in court.

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