Tavis Smiley has lost a bid to throw out PBS’ lawsuit that accuses him of violating his contract by having sex with his subordinates.
Smiley’s attorneys had argued that PBS was trying to punish him for behavior that long predated his current contract. But in a ruling on Thursday, D.C. Superior Court Judge Yvonne Williams disagreed, finding that PBS had also claimed more recent misconduct.
“For example, PBS alleged that Smiley had ‘multiple sexual encounters with subordinates,'” the judge wrote. “In addition, Mr. Smiley made ‘unfavorable comments about PBS in television appearances.’ These allegations include misconduct that occurred during the 2015, 2016, and 2017 contract periods… In addition, PBS alleges that Mr. Smiley publicly lied during the 2017 contract term about a 2007 settlement agreement with a female subordinate, which violates the Morals Clause. Finally, the sexual relationship that Mr. Smiley had with his subordinate, Kimberly, who served as Executive Producer at TS Media spanned the relevant contractual periods.”
