The Dolton Village Board voted Monday to approve settlements in a former village employee’s sexual harassment lawsuit that named Trustee Andrew Holmes and former Mayor Tiffany Henyard as defendants.
The lawsuit alleging Holmes drugged the former employee on a 2023 work trip to Las Vegas and that she woke up next to him in a hotel room drew attention of community activists opposed to Henyard’s administration. One advocate was arrested last summer after charging at Holmes during a village meeting.
The settlement approvals come in the wake of another lawsuit filed against Holmes alleging he abused his power to sexually assault a 16-year-old when she was recovering from sex trafficking. Holmes was a prominent anti-violence activist before being elected a Dolton trustee in 2016.
While Holmes tried to vote against the settlement for the former employee Monday, he was told he must abstain from both settlement votes due to being named in the lawsuit. The former employee’s settlement was approved 5-0, while the settlement for the other plaintiff was approved despite Trustee Stan Brown voting no and Trustee Kiana Belcher voting present.
Records show Las Vegas police investigated the 2023 alleged assault, but prosecutors did not charge Holmes and he has denied wrongdoing.
A Las Vegas police investigative file obtained by the Tribune through a public records request describes evidence in the case, including a recording of Holmes allegedly speaking about his encounter with the former employee.
In her lawsuit, the former employee alleged she went out for dinner with Holmes, whom she thought of as “an uncle.” The woman later reported feeling disoriented, told him so and blacked out, according to the suit.
That night, Holmes called a member of Henyard’s security detail and described “a host of his exploits from the trip, many of a sexual nature,” according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit states that Henyard asked the officer why the trustee would have called him, and he said he didn’t know other than “to brag.” Henyard, also a defendant in the lawsuit, filed a legal response denying these and other allegations.
Holmes could not immediately be reached for comment on the settlement agreements.
ostevens@chicagotribune.com
