Tesla was previously sentenced to $137 million in compensation for racial discrimination, which is one of the largest in similar cases. However, U.S. District Judge William Orrick in San Francisco said on Wednesday that Tesla should be held responsible for the racial discrimination incident, but the penalty was too severe and the damages should be reduced to $15 million.
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In October, a U.S. jury found Tesla responsible for what happened to Owen Diaz, a former black employee who worked as an elevator operator at Tesla’s Fremont, California, factory. The jury found that Diaz had been in a hostile work environment because of his race.
In his 43-page verdict on Wednesday, O’Rick said the evidence “sufficiently supports” the jury’s verdict that Tesla was legally responsible. But he said the jury’s $6.9 million in compensatory damages awarded to Diaz was “excessive” and should be reduced to $1.5 million.
While the $130 million in punitive damages was “too much unconstitutional” and should be reduced to $13.5 million. Orrick gave Diaz 30 days to accept $15 million in damages or seek a new trial for damages.
