Sony exec handed $850,000 housekeeping bill

Enslavement doesn't pay

By Ashlee Vance in Chicago • Get more from this author

Posted in Bootnotes, 5th September 2004 19:03 GMT

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A Sony movie executive and his wife have been ordered to pay their former maid $850,000 to settle charges of enslavement and assault and battery.

Nena Ruiz last week received the award from a Los Angeles jury, which decided the former housekeeper was entitled to back wages and punitive damages. The jury found that James Jackson, a vice president of legal affairs at Sony Pictures Entertainment, had kept Ruiz against her will and paid her only $300 for a year of work at his Los Angeles home, according to a report from the Associated Press. Jackson's wife has additionally been held liable for slapping Ruiz and pulling her hair.

"Slavery still exists, and I want to tell victims they should not tolerate it and should not be afraid to seek help," said Nena Ruiz, according to the AP.

Ruiz claimed the Jacksons had taken away her passport and threatened to call immigration officers if the maid tried to leave. The Jacksons have denied the charges and could appeal the jury's decision.

The AP reports that Sony has already suspended Jackson and plans to fire the VP.