Hollywood actress Rosario Dawson and her family are accused of assault on a transgender man, according to a suit filed in a Los Angeles court, saying the actress and members of her family violated the person’s civil rights. According to court documents, the 55-year-old Dedrek Finley had worked as a handyman for Dawson and her family since December 2017.
Finley’s attorney Tasha Alyssa Hill claimed that both sides had a great relationship and at some point the family even invited Finley to live in the home they rented in North Hollywood. At that time, Finley identified herself as a woman and the family was aware that she was a lesbian.
But when Finley decided to come out as a transgender man and told the family that he had taken the name of Dedrek and would use he/him pronouns “things started going south”, the attorney said.
According to the suit, Dawson and her family “misgendered him multiple times each day, with deliberate indifference as to the appropriate way to address Mr Finley". The suit claims that Dawson did nothing to correct the situation and acted with deliberate indifference.
Several months after Finley came out, Dawson’s family supposedly ordered him to move out of the house. He refused, saying there were no legal grounds for his eviction. According to the suit, the assault itself reportedly took place on 28 April 2018. Dawson’s mother, Isabella Dawson purportedly dragged Finley by his arm out of the window and then attacked him.
"While beating Mr Finley, Isabel screamed, ‘You’re not so much of a man now', which was a clear and denigrating reference to Mr Finley’s gender identity", the suit states.
Rosario Dawson allegedly assisted her mother in the assault, she stepped on Finley’s hand and restrained him on the ground “to ensure that her mother could continue battering him, the suit claims. The actress supposedly threatened to kill Finley’s cat if he didn't leave the house. She also reportedly stole Finley’s phone, which contained videos of threats she and the family made against him.
According to the court documents, Finley is seeking damages for discrimination, battery, assault, and emotional distress. His attorney Tasha Alyssa Hill said her client wants to get compensation so that he can forget about the incident and get back on track with his life.
Dawson’s lawyer has not responded to a request for comment.
