“I wanted to apologize if anything I did offended you or crossed a line,” the text read. “I like to get a little crazy. If you weren’t offended, then let’s do it again. LOL How is your day so far? :)”
That’s the message former CBS entertainment reporter Ken Lombardi says senior CBS producer Duane Tollison sent him after an incident at a 2013 office party. According to Lombardi, Tollison allegedly pinned him to a wall, kissed his neck, then slipped his hand down his pants and took firm hold of his penis and testes.
Now, Lombard is suing his former employer for firing him after he complained about the incident to HR.
Lombardi, who identifies as bisexual, also says he was left “terrified” after being molested by CBS Evening News director Chip Colley while the two were having drinks at a gay bar after work one evening. Colley allegedly kissed Lombardi then grabbed his leg and starting asking him about what kind of porn he liked to watch.
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“While I was being attacked by Chip,” Lombardi told the New York Post, “I was texting my brother, ‘Oh my God, I’m about to be raped. Please, God, help me. It’s painful to even look at them again.”
Afterward, he says Colley started following him around the office “in a creepy fashion.” He now claims to suffer from PTSD from the harassment.
“I have nightmares,” he said. “I relive these moments every day. The sound of ice in a glass will take me back to that moment.”
After Lombardi went to CBS’s HR department about the situation, he claims his direct supervisor, Paula Cohen, didn’t take his allegations seriously. Lombardi was let go from the network in November 2014.
CBS is denying Lombardi’s allegations, saying they are “without merit” and vowing to mount a vigorous legal defense.
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Giancarlo85
This is a very serious matter that should result in legal prosecution. However, I am a bit suspicious that Lombardi should have took this matter right to authorities. The “HR department” isn’t the correct venue. Maybe I watch too much Law and Order.
Realitycheck
Giancarlo is not that easy when your work is on the line especially when you have friends at work.
I was sexually harassed by a co worker for two years before my boss took me seriously,
I even yelled at my boss several times and tossed his computer key board on the wall
literally smashing it, he did not fired me because he knew I was right, as well as a good worker.
But he did not want to loose the other valuable worker either and he was embarrassed to deal
with the situation, I asked my co workers to look out for me, getting limited results at best.
Eventually to make it stop, had to threaten police action citing my boss as a accomplice, suddenly it
all came to grinding, unfortunately the old creep still works there, but everybody found out and he got
cold shoulders ever since.
Giancarlo85
@Realitycheck: Yeah, I just realized that… but perhaps there was more he could have done. CBS didn’t seem willing to listen anyways.
Donald Kirby
oh Pahleeze!
Realitycheck
Think of it of a hot potato that can explode at the wrong moments, an employer is afraid of law suits and
work/revenues interruptions, at the same time it has to be deal with.
Steve Bourdeau
I think the other patrons at the “gay bar” would have noticed a rape, granted they might have watched or joined in but they would have noticed!
Transiteer
Ohh jeezz. Get over it. This is a boss thing, not a ‘rape’ thing. Why are people so scared of absolutely everything? (Oh yeah … Corporate America keeps you that way i.e. ANY American cop/drama tv show)
socaldesign
…by CBS Evening News director Chip Colley while the two were having drinks at a gay bar after work one evening.
Why are you going to a Gay Bar with a colleague after work? Maybe he thought it was a date? I can’t count the number of times when I was young in WeHo where some guy had his hands down my pants at the Motherlode.
Nicholas Wozniak
PTSD from this… OMG ridiculous.
Raphael
Obviously someone thinks himself irresistible, right? That story is very strange but if true it’s easy to prove, just let the authorities verify the existence and veracity of this message.
Conor O Brien
If he thinks that constitutes rape than he needs to go listen to people in a rape victim support group. That’s rape, not this!!!
cflekken
Allegations or sexual assault and harassment are very serious. But there’s just something amiss about his texting while fearing he was “about to get raped”, instead of just leaving (even making up an excuse to leave). At what point did he say “no” to either of these men? At what point did he stop the kissing and groping? Clearly, based on the text message from Tollison, it doesn’t appear that he was too strongly objectionable to the actions. Maybe he acted awkward afterwards, but nothing that seems to indicate it was a clear “no, I’m not interested”. The same appears to be the case with Colley. If Lombardi made a strong, definitive, “I’m’ not interested” to Lombardi, it would seem that he wouldn’t have been followed by Colley in the office. Maybe there’s more to the story than what’s stated here.
Mykaels
So you were afraid of being raped… in a public place… surrounded by people. Three times I have seen men be inappropriate with someone in a gay bar, and each time the guy being assaulted indicated publicly that this was not acceptable, and in each case, the assaulter was ejected, because HELLO liability.
He definitely has a case for office harassment, as in it does not matter even if they DID have sex, stalking is stalking.
Realitycheck
@cflekken: True if did not say stop, to the guys that were sexually harassing him,
then he has no complains to be made.
Andrew Lopez
So while he was texting his brother that he was being raped at the bar he didn’t do anything to say no?
Raoul Wijnands
if this is rape, then i have been raped several times.
NoCagada
@Andrew Lopez: “About to be raped”?!?
DRAMA QUEEN
petensfo
So, you’re out at a gay bar, with a gay man, who after drinks, hits on you?
Gurrrrrrl, you definitely owe some rape victims an amends.
As far as a supervisor hitting on you at an office party… that sounds bad, but I’m already skeptical of you (and I hate that b/c these are serious offenses) b/c your description of the bar is so disproportionate. I’ve grabbed a guy’s junk b4. Something I definitely didn’t do until I knew how it would be rec’d.
polarisfashion
I’ve been groped a few times in Gay Bars. If I’m not interested, I tell hands off! If he’s hot as hell, I grope him right back!
grrrrandy
This is a weird one. As an abuse survivor (childhood sexual abuse, in my case) my bias is to usually believe the victim in cases like this, but wtf?
He’s a bisexual having drinks with a gay co-worker in a gay bar. Bars are places were people who are attracted to one-another hook up, with the help of a little alcoholic lubrication. Yes, he has every right to object to having somebody shove their hands down his pants, but maybe the other guy assumed they were on a date. Hands-in-pants is the gay handshake, in some circles.
What I don’t get: he had time to text his bro that he thought he was about to get raped. That means he was alone at some point. If he was really that afraid and uncomfortable, why didn’t he just get the fuck out of there, instead of trying to record the incident in text?
I think he was probably flirting with his superior in order to get ahead in the business, and if that didn’t work he was going to try and work the sexual assault angle for some $$$ or blackmail. He didn’t expect to get fired, so this lawsuit is his last ditch attempt at profiting from the situation.
Or maybe I’ve just become jaded from reading about too many situations like this. That’s enough internet for me today.
MinnesotaNotNice
Sorry, but I’m not buying Ken Lombardi’s story at all. I think he’s looking for a scenario where he can drag some other CBS employees that he may have had a falling out with into a bullshit story of his concocting and collect some bucks.
scotshot
I doubt that working at a large corporation like CBS that HR would turn a deaf ear. At this point all I’ve heard is his side of the story, even so his tale reeks – IMO.
lauraspencer
Having friends that work at CBS I inquired about this story. Lombardi was let go last Fall for poor job performance. It wasn’t until this time that he brought up the issues with Tollison and Colley. If it had been a problem he should have reported them immediately (he claims the Tollison incident happened in 2013) yet didn’t report it until his exit.
If you read the entire story Lombardi says he went to the gay bar, Hardware with Colley for a job performance review. Who in their right mind would think you would have a performance review in a gay bar?? Who if they are getting raped as the time to text their brother? Those are some talented fingers.
Sounds like Lombardi is a disgruntled employee who lost his job and is now trying to make some money.
Dieter Michaels
It was especially terrifying, because he was TRYING to take a selfie for his Grindr account when the event took place……
Michael Scott
Hello I would have been flattered!
Michael Scott
He looks like a pretty boy tease..
hotshot70
If this had been a woman getting grabbed by her breasts or a hand down her pants, this would have been believed and immediate actions would have happened. For some reason, some cannot imagine it’s possible for men to be victims as well.
stranded
At first i was like, come on man, can’t you take a little flirting? But the more i think about it, i can see how this could be a terrifying work environment. I mean if this woman who had her genitals touched at an office party or whose leg was caressed while being asked what kind of porn do they watch; there’s no denying most of us would be on her side and calling the men pigs. Because he is a man, i think society creates a double standard where we think men should just “man up” and deal with it. There could also be some victim blaming. Why did he go to gay bar with his coworker? Umm, because it was his coworker and he probably wanted to make friends. I’m not condemning the accused but i don’t think we should criticize Lombardi just yet.
Black Pegasus
I believe him. It seems he was constantly reminded of how beautiful his eyes are. Even from celebs. Not hard to imagine him being groped and lusted after by fellow employees and his superiors.
http://youtu.be/STPVVGF3yYk
Brian Crossan
I thought ball grabbing is gay for hello and goodbye?
Sluggo2007
I don’t believe a word of it. Disgruntled former employee, clear and simple.
Saint Law
*clinks ice in glass
jjose712
Sorry but no, i understand him fearing the harrasing or being fired, but the whole rape thing was a bit too much, raping someone is not that easy, and he was touched in a gay bar, come on in front of people. The behaviour is inapropiate and he has all the right to sue, but saying you feared to be raped when you are in a public place, not being threatened with a weapon is exagerate a bit
Stache99
@Black Pegasus: Yes the dark side of being beautiful I guess. I’m sure it hasn’t hurt him in his career though.
DavidIntl
I have to join the chorus of those who are seeing a mountain being made out of molehill here. At the point at which you go for drinks to a gay bar, I think you have consented to the normal rules of engagement in that venue, not the rules which govern interaction between colleagues in the work place. And although it may seem inappropriate to some, even groping as described isn’t at all unusual behaviour in that context.
enfilmigult
Wow, these comments suck. I mean, there may be a world where you can just tell your superiors “no” when they sexually harass you without any fear of consequences to your career—and where that’s such a given that it’s suspicious when you don’t—but that world is not Earth. Here it is:
-Getting a drink with your boss after work is not a way of saying “let’s fuck.” It’s not. Not even if it’s a gay bar.
-When you’re meeting your boss at said gay bar for a job performance review (!), guess what, the boss is the one who chose the location. You may get leery, but what are you going to do, say “no, that sounds like you’re going to try to fuck me”? Yeah, that’ll go over really well. Complain to HR that he wanted to do a performance review at a bar, which clearly means he was about to try to fuck you? Sure, they’ll believe every word. Good luck on the review.
-If some random douchebag starts groping you, yes, getting him kicked out of the bar or leaving yourself would be the best way to end that situation. If your boss starts groping you during a job performance review he decided should take place at a bar, good luck doing either of those things. You’re still going to have to see each other the next day at work, and he’ll still be your boss. He knows that. That’s why he’s doing it. Good luck with your career if you call the cops or cause a big public scene every time you’re sexually harassed by your superiors with no firm witnesses, the job offers will really be rolling in.
-If your other boss gropes and kisses you at an office party and then sends a text “apologizing if anything I did offended you or crossed a line,” it’s because that’s absolutely what happened and you both know it. People hooking up mutually don’t write that the next day.
-He didn’t text saying he was being raped right then and there, learn to read.
Sansacro
@Black Pegasus: Sorry, he seems very undynamic and not that cute in my eyes. But that’s irrelevant. I ain’t buying the PTSD and rape claims. Law suits have tainted everything, although sexual harrassment is real, especially for women. This guy looks like a p*(*ssy.
JamesBDallas
I am sure I missed this in the story where he asked both men to stop. I also agree that if HR did not respond he had a responsibility to go higher up, this is going to be a very tough case to prove.
dwbyers1960
Have you seen this guy interview? He was fired because he is awful.
Albert Galowitch
This guy looking for a quick buck.
martinbakman
Maybe his giggling like a little girl when someone grabbed Ken’s balls sent the wrong message.
Reginald Augustus Salazar Magpayo
It was just a free physical for testicular cancer.
Craig Houghton
Just wondering if he was alone with this guy in the gay bar or if the gay bar was locked with them inside. Doesn’t sound like he was truthfully concerned about being raped if he took time out from the groping yo text his brother about it. Did he say “No” in either situation? Not saying he may not have a sexual harassment case. However, it doesn’t seem like he was a totally unwilling participant in either case. Being able to slip your hand down the front of someone’s pants far enough yo grab their penis and balls is not something easily done to a non-willing person.
Ken A.
He should have asked for a raise after his boss gave a his genitals a squeeze.
Josh Zorn
Attention whore!!!
Lvng1Tor
ok all kidding aside, if these men made unwanted sexual advances and went so far as to touch him areas of the body that are generally considered “invite only” and he was fired for complaining about it then he should sue. And should win.
Men do get sexually harassed and it is wrong. When it happens to women we say victim, when it happens to a man we make jokes and tell him to man-up or enjoy the attention. Sexual harassment can affect your ability to do your job, if you are fired for complaining it can affect you getting a new job and to actually take it so far as to take it to court when your job is in the public eye and you know this could end a career that was actually going upward adds validity to his claim.
As for all the lawyer maneuvering that is going on in the case…the ptsd, the fear of being raped (more than likely it was meant as a omfg bitchy text to his brother along with an eye roll..the lawyer got a hold of it and turned it into something more) They really need to loose the “clinking of ice” triggering ptsd though.
They may actually be hurting his case by not sticking to the facts. Unwanted advancements/assault and being terminated for that reason. Leave the ptsd out of it and just say it made him uncomfortable and with so many men willing to cover it up in the office it at all levels it made for a hostile work environment.
Chris
I’m not understanding when he reported this to HR. According to the story, he got fired as a result of reporting the 2nd incident; but according to one of the other posters, he reported these events only after being fired based on a poor performance review. Much of his case will turn on that detail.
Now it may be that his boss gave him a poor review as a preemptive effort to get rid of him before he could report it to HR. But still, things don’t sound right.
And yeah, no matter where it happened (gay bar or office party), unwanted sexual advances between coworkers can form the basis for charges of sexual harassment. But if this guy failed to make it clear that those advances were unwanted, then things get murky.
blackberry finn
As with any experience of abuse, it’s not the severity of the act itself that determines the level of emotional damage but the sensitivity/response of the victim.
Imagine finally being in your dream-job and terrified of doing anything to rock the boat. The boss says, “Hey, let’s go to a bar”,and you automatically say yes for fear of offending him. He gets a little tipsy and makes sexual innuendo or a sexual move. You want to leave right then and there, but what if he gets offended and fires you? His hand down your pants makes you feel violated not only because you dislike him physically, but also because he is consciously taking advantage of his position and power in satisfaction of his libido, but again, your career in tow, you “pass it off” to him as no big deal. Then yet another co-worker harasses you. Might that not give you inordinate stress?
I’m siding with the victim here because frail-ego’d bosses do use their power as leverage to curry favor with attractive employees.