Court rules bosses are still authority figures outside of work
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The Minnesota Court of Appeals has ruled that a boss is still an authority figure in sexual misconduct that occurs outside the workplace.
The ruling stems from the case of an assistant manager at a Dakota County pizza restaurant, Clinton Fero, who supervised a 16-year-old cook.
Fero waived his right to a jury trial and a judge found him guilty of third degree sexual conduct with the 16-year-old.
Fero appealed arguing that he was not in a position of authority at the time of the act because it occurred off of work hours and at another worker's home. The court disagreed.
The panel said a supervisor doesn't lose his or her coercive power as an authority figure simply because the sexual misconduct occurs off company time or off the work premises.
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