A former cheerleader dropped her lawsuit against Northwestern for alleged forced labor and sex trafficking Wednesday, bringing to an end a yearslong legal battle over the treatment of the NU Spirit Squad.
Hayden Richardson, a member of the cheer team from 2018-2020, filed the lawsuit in 2021, which alleged that University employees did not respond adequately to complaints by Richardson and her peers that members of the cheer team were repeatedly harassed and groped by fans and alumni at the Wilson Club, an exclusive donor suite, for the purpose of soliciting donations.
The lawsuit named the University, former Spirit Squad Coordinator Pamela Bonnevier, former Deputy Director of Athletics Mike Polisky, former Deputy Title IX Coordinator Amanda DaSilva and former Associate Athletic Director for Marketing Heather Van Hoegarden Obering as defendants. Bonnevier was fired in 2020 following an Office of Equity investigation into her conduct, and Polisky stepped down from the role of athletic director in May 2021 following an uproar from the NU community.
University spokesperson Jon Yates said the University is committed to maintaining a safe and harassment-free environment for all community members.
“Since Hayden Richardson’s lawsuit was filed over three years ago, Northwestern has steadfastly maintained that her claims should be dismissed,” Yates said in a statement to The Daily.
NU filed a motion to dismiss forced labor, sex trafficking, forced-labor trafficking, breach of contract and emotional distress claims in June 2021, but a federal judge ruled in September that most of the claims could proceed under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act.
The case hinged on whether the “Spirit Squad Contract,” which allegedly stipulated that cheerleaders would have to repay the University for scholarships and expenses if they voluntarily left the team, could amount to coercion.
In a statement to ESPN, Polisky called the dismissal “vindicating and over three and a half years in the making.
“At every point during my time at Northwestern, the protection and welfare of students was my first priority,” Polisky wrote in the statement. “Working in athletics was and remains my passion, and I have cherished the more than twenty years I have spent working with athletes in both professional and collegiate environments. I’m relieved that these allegations are now behind me, and I can return to a life and career with my reputation intact.”
An attorney for Richardson declined to comment.
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