Dunwoody Town Council accepts mediation agreement in harassment case

At its August 26 meeting, the Dunwoody City Council approved mediation regarding a former police officer who had accused his supervisor of repeated sexual harassment.

Without discussion, the council voted 6-1 to accept a mediation agreement after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission wrote a letter to the city declaring that the lawsuit brought by Bryan Castellanos, who accused the Dunwoody Police Department of retaliation, had merit. Council member John Heneghan was the only one to vote against the decision.

Without mentioning Castellanos or the determination letter, the council voted to accept the agreement. However, the case number on the council's agenda, 410-2021-0565, matched the case number in the EEOC's May 31 determination letter.

The letter from Darrell Graham, the EEOC's Atlanta district director, which was leaked to Rough Draft through a third party, said the agency found that Dunwoody police retaliated against Castellanos “by including evidence he provided to support his harassment allegations in an investigative report that was released to the public.”

The letter further stated that the agency had determined that “unlawful practices” had occurred and had therefore invited the two parties to enter into an informal mediation process.

If either party, Castellanos or the city, refused to participate in talks, the commission would “notify the parties in writing and advise them of the alternative of judicial enforcement available to the complaining party. [Castellanos].”

“The record supports the finding that publishing the evidence without balancing the need for redaction and/or privacy protections would deter a reasonable person from engaging in protected activities,” the letter continues.

Castellanos, who was named Dunwoody Police Officer of the Year in 2018, accused former Lt. Fidel Espinoza of sending dozens of sexually charged text messages and demands for sexual favors in exchange for lucrative after-hours jobs. In 2020, then-Dunwoody Police Chief Billy Grogan released a 146-page report detailing his findings following an internal investigation.

The report included 17 pages of screenshots of text conversations between Espinoza and Castellanos in which Espinoza repeatedly asked for pictures of Castellanos' “turtle” and several explicit images of Espinoza's exposed crotch. Espinoza also sent Castellanos a picture of Castellanos urinating, which was taken without the officer's knowledge.

The text conversations remained largely unedited, with the exception of the graphic images that Espinoza sent to Castellanos.

The EEOC's decision letter said the agency did not find sufficient evidence to support Castellanos' allegation of sex discrimination, but supported his claim that the release of the report resulted in retaliation against him.

This is the latest in a spate of lawsuits against the former lieutenant, who resigned in 2020 after the allegations surfaced. In May, a DeKalb County civil jury awarded Castellanos $60,000 in compensatory damages and $120,000 in punitive damages after two days of testimony from several officers who also claimed Espinoza had harassed them.

Espinoza has consistently denied the allegations and stated that any communication between him and the officers was consensual.

Sources familiar with the investigation say the settlement agreement will certainly include financial compensation for the plaintiff.

According to the EEOC website, if a violation is found, the plaintiff “could be entitled to damages at trial.”

The city government declined to comment on the details of the agreement. Castellanos, who works for the police in a neighboring city, also declined to comment on the matter, and Ben Bengtson, his attorney in the civil case, did not respond to a reporter's request for comment.