Jury Rejects Teacher’s Harassment Suit

A San Mateo County high school teacher failed to convince a jury that two other teachers had sexually harassed her because she is a lesbian.

In a 9-3 vote, the jury found that the two teachers did not harass Teresa “Tere” Curl. She was fired from Menlo-Atherton High School in March 2000 after teacher Alan Ida discovered a gun in Curl’s classroom.

Curl, 43, sued Ida and teacher Al Ramirez, along with the Sequoia Union High School District, for harassment after the incident. She said Ramirez and Ida called her derogatory names and taunted her with sexually explicit gestures. She accused the district of ignoring the harassment.