Appeals Court Upholds $2.5M Damages In Sex Assault Lawsuit
INDIANA, Pa. (AP) - A state appeals court has upheld a jury's award of nearly $2.5 million in damages to three women who sued claiming they were fondled and otherwise sexually abused by a Pennsylvania man over more than 20 years.
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports the Superior Court upheld the 2014 Indiana County verdict in a ruling Wednesday.
Sixty-seven-year-old Domenic Romani was ordered the pay the women $1.25 million in punitive damages and $1.225 million in compensatory damages after a two-day trial.
He had previously pleaded guilty to indecent assault and received two years' probation after state police brought criminal charges against him in 2011 stemming from allegations he fondled them since childhood.
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Romani's attorney had argued there was no evidence the alleged abuse physically impacted the women, but the appellate court disagreed.
Romani's attorney didn't immediately return a call Friday.
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