Case 3:17-cv-00739-TJC-JBT Document 192 Filed 07/26/18 Page 68 of 70 PageID 10746
emotional damage, stigmatization and shame from not being permitted to use the boys’ restroom at school. See Sheely v. MRI Radiology Network, P.A., 505 F.3d 1173, 1199 (11th Cir. 2007) (“As a matter of both common sense and case law, emotional distress is a predictable, and thus forseeable, consequence of discrimination.”); “Humiliation and insult are recognized, recoverable harms, and a plaintiff’s own testimony of embarrassment and humiliation can be sufficient to support an award for compensatory damages.” Bogle v. McClure, 332 F.3d 1347, 1359 (11th Cir. 2003) (quotation and citation omitted) (upholding awards of punitive and compensatory damages in § 1983 race discrimination case); see also Goodin v. Bank of Amer., N.A., 114 F. Supp. 3d 1197, 1213 (M.D. Fla. 2015) (awarding emotional distress damages based on plaintiffs’ testimony, even though they did not seek medical attention and no expert or doctor testified); Adams proposes $25,000 but that seems too high. After all, as Adams himself has argued (through counsel), the point of this case is not money. Based on the evidence, the Court will award Adams $1,000.00 in compensatory emotional distress damages.[1]
- ↑ This $1,000.00 award will compensate Adams for his injuries arising out of the violations of the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX (the injuries from which are identical). See Fitzgerald, 555 U.S. at 254–55 (explaining that damages may be awarded for violations of both the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX). Adams is not entitled to double recovery so the total damages award remains $1,000.00.
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