A court case initiated by former Bakersfield Condor player Jason Bailey against the team, and former coaches Marty Raymond and Mark Pederson, is in the process of being dismissed.
Documents filed with the Superior Court of Kern County on Nov. 4 indicated that counsel for Bailey voluntarily filed a request to have the Court dismiss all claims of religious discrimination against the team.
The Condors, owner Jonathan Fleisig, as well as the individual coaches, maintained that the claims of Bailey were patently false and unfounded.
The pending dismissal comes without a settlement of any kind for Bailey, the Condors said.
Bailey was assigned to the Condors by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2008-09 season and played in 35 games.
“In even the most unmeritorious cases, plaintiffs can receive nuisance value settlements paid by defendants who simply want to avoid the costs of litigation, but in this case, Bailey dismissed his claims without receiving a single thing in return. Bailey’s willingness to dismiss the case in the absence of receiving any settlement certainly evidences the frivolity of his claims.”
Bryan Freedman, counsel for the Condors, said in statement.
Bailey filed the suit in Orange County Superior Court in January, accusing Raymond and Pederson of anti-Semitism. It was transferred to Kern County Superior Court, with a different attorney, in July.
“We feel vindicated after this ridiculous ordeal,” Condors owner Jonathan Fleisig said in a statement. “To have our team name and the city of Bakersfield dragged through the mud by these claims is reprehensible. We have always considered ourselves an upstanding organization in this community and a proud representative of Bakersfield and Kern County.”
Raymond left the team in June to take a coaching position in Europe. Pederson has not been with the Condors the past three seasons and is coaching in Japan.
The Condors are investigating whether to file a malicious prosecution claim against Bailey and his counsel.
