--- title: "City Performance Defense Wins in Harassment Retaliation Suit" meta: "og:description": "A California jury clears the City of Ontario in a FEHA retaliation lawsuit, ruling that a worker’s poor job performance justified her probationary termination." "og:title": "City Performance Defense Wins in Harassment Retaliation Suit" description: "A California jury clears the City of Ontario in a FEHA retaliation lawsuit, ruling that a worker’s poor job performance justified her probationary termination." --- March 5, 2026 # **City Performance Defense Wins in Harassment Retaliation Suit** A California jury clears the City of Ontario in a FEHA retaliation lawsuit, ruling that a worker’s poor job performance justified her probationary termination. [**Labor and Employment Law**](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/jury-verdict/category/labor-and-employment-law) [**Wrongful Termination/Employment**](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/jury-verdict/category/wrongful-termination-employment) ### **Outline** Author ![](https://media.jurimatic.com/cdn-cgi/image/q=70/profile_images/shared_image_1.webp) **Sohini Chakraborty****Sohini Chakraborty is a lawyer, with over two years of experience in legal research and analysis. She specializes in working closely with expert witnesses, offering critical support in preparing legal research and detailed case studies.** ![Article Image](https://media.jurimatic.com/cdn-cgi/image/q=70/images/Mancillas.webp) In the matter of Mancillas v. City of Ontario, a probationary customer service representative alleged she was wrongfully terminated in retaliation for reporting sexual harassment and requesting mental health leave. Mancillas claimed coworkers subjected her to misogynistic insults, referencing characters from "Jersey Shore," and that HR dismissed her concerns as being "antisocial." Despite her claims of a hostile work environment and violations of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), the City maintained her dismissal was strictly performance-based. On September 3, 2025, a San Bernardino jury delivered a defense verdict. While acknowledging her protected activities, the jury concluded that her job performance was the "substantial motivating factor" and that the City would have made the same termination decision regardless of her complaints. ## **Case Background** Angela Mancillas worked for the City of Ontario as a customer service representative in the utilities department. Her tenure became difficult in March 2021 when she began facing persistent harassment from two coworkers, Robert Jones and Douglas Mendoza. These colleagues reportedly targeted her with misogynistic insults, frequently calling her "Angelina from Jersey Shore" and a "dirty little hamster" a reference to a television character known for promiscuity. Mancillas formally complained to the Human Resources department about this behavior on April 30, 2021, describing it as sexist and demeaning. Instead of receiving support, her supervisor, Claudia Hernandez, sent a department-wide email that appeared to downplay her concerns. Furthermore, an HR representative told Mancillas she was being "antisocial" and "not a team player" for taking the comments personally. By August 2021, Mancillas had requested a leave of absence to manage mental health struggles, including depression and anxiety. The City of Ontario terminated her employment on September 21, 2021, while she was still on probation. ### **Cause** Mancillas alleged that the City of Ontario fired her in retaliation for her complaints about sexual harassment and her request for disability-related medical leave. She claimed the City violated the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). ### **Injury** The Plaintiff stated that the City’s actions caused her significant financial loss, including lost wages and benefits. She also reported suffering from severe emotional distress, anxiety, humiliation, and a loss of self-esteem due to the toxic work environment and her sudden termination. ### **Damages Sought** Mancillas sought a variety of damages at trial. These included general damages for emotional pain and suffering, special damages for her financial losses, and payment of her legal fees and Court costs. ## **Key Arguments and Proceedings** The legal battle officially began when Mancillas filed her complaint in November 2021. The case eventually moved to a jury trial in August 2025 before Judge Carlos Cabrera in the San Bernardino Superior Court. ### **Legal Representation** **Plaintiff(s):** Angela Mancillas · **Counsel for Plaintiff(s):** Aanand Mehtani **Defendant(s):** City of Ontario · **Counsel for Defendant(s):** Mark Meyerhoff | Michael E. Gerst | Liebert Cassidy Whitmore · **Experts for Defendant(s):** [Nicholas Buzas](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/mailto:https://expertwitnessprofiler.com/expert-witness/Nick-Buzas/1548205) | [Rick Sarkisian](https://expertwitnessprofiler.com/expert-witness/Ricky-Sarkisian/1526876) ## **Key Arguments or Remarks by Counsel** ### **Claims** The Plaintiff's legal team argued that the City had a clear motive to get rid of Mancillas. They contended that the timing of her firing shortly after she complained about harassment and asked for mental health leave proved the City acted out of retaliation. Counsel emphasized that the City failed to protect her from a hostile work environment and ignored its legal duty to accommodate her disabilities. ### **Defense** The City of Ontario denied all allegations of wrongdoing. Their defense focused on the Plaintiff's status as a probationary employee. They argued that Mancillas had poor job performance and that her release from probation was a legitimate business decision unrelated to her complaints or her health status. The City maintained that it would have fired her regardless of her requests for accommodation. ## **Jury Verdict** After listening to the evidence and deliberating, the jury reached a complex decision on September 3, 2025. On September 3, 2025, following a multi-day trial in the San Bernardino Superior Court, the jury returned a comprehensive special verdict that ultimately cleared the City of Ontario of legal liability. The jurors addressed several complex questions regarding whether the City’s decision to end Angela Mancillas’s employment was driven by illegal motives or legitimate business concerns. While the jury acknowledged that Mancillas had engaged in protected activities specifically by requesting accommodations for her mental health disabilities—they found that these factors did not play a "substantial" role in the City's decision-making process. The verdict form reveals that the jury systematically rejected each of the Plaintiff's primary claims. When asked to determine if Mancillas's gender or her complaints about sexual harassment were substantial motivating reasons for her release from probation, the jury answered "No" to both. They similarly found that the City did not act with retaliatory intent regarding her request for medical leave or her disability status. This indicates that while the jury may have recognized the friction between Mancillas and her coworkers, they did not believe the City’s management terminated her as a punishment for speaking out or for being a woman. A pivotal moment in the verdict centered on the City’s defense regarding "poor job performance." The jury specifically found that Mancillas’s performance as a customer service representative was a substantial motivating factor in her termination. Most importantly, the jurors concluded that the City of Ontario would have released her from probation anyway, based solely on her performance, even if she had never complained about harassment or requested medical leave. This "same decision" defense effectively shielded the City from liability under California law. As a result of these findings, the jury did not move to the damages phase of the trial. The final judgment, signed by Judge Carlos Cabrera on January 23, 2026, codified this result, declaring that Angela Mancillas would take nothing from the complaint. The Court officially dismissed the action and awarded judgment in favor of the City of Ontario, ending the years-long legal dispute. **Court Documents** [Complaint](https://exlitem.sharepoint.com/:b:/s/ContentMarketing/IQDs84lSa87bS4IJ7SsgD0nYATDUILYt8um_rLGAbW65IIM?e=5IV6v3) [Jury Verdict](https://exlitem.sharepoint.com/:b:/s/ContentMarketing/IQA-WcSFlv64S6eKf1EKefkhAfg4Pi24wGL1VAtN8LUce2I?e=tRUrDa) [Share with Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit) [Share with X](https://x.com/intent/post?url=https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit&text=x) [Share with LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit) [Share with Email](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/mailto:?body=https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit&subject=email) [Share with WhatsApp](https://api.whatsapp.com/send?text=https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit%20whatsapp) ### **Find your next Expert Witness today** ![Sanjay Adhia](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/_ipx/q_80/user-default.svg) ###### **Sanjay Adhia** Forensic Psychiastry ![George Reis](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/_ipx/q_80/user-default.svg) ###### **George Reis** Forensic Imaging ![Maria Babinetz](https://exlitem.com/jury-verdict/city-performance-defense-wins-in-harassment-retaliation-suit/_ipx/q_80/user-default.svg) ###### **Maria Babinetz** Vocational Rehabilitation Find and retain experts without brokerage or upcharge. ### Looking for more? Join our subscriber community and receive regular updates delivered straight to your inbox. It’s quick, easy, and free.