Family of Former Activision Employee Drops Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.
The family of Kerri Moynihan, an Activision Blizzard employee who died by suicide during a company retreat in 2017, have reportedly dropped their wrongful death lawsuit against the Santa Monica-based video game publisher.
Paul and Janet Moynihan originally sued Activision in March, alleging that sexual harassment their daughter experienced at work was a “significant factor” in her death. The Moynihans subsequently requested to drop the lawsuit on May 6, Axios reported on Tuesday, and asked that it be dismissed “with prejudice,” meaning that they can’t sue again.
Attorneys at Los Angeles-based firm Isaacs Friedberg, which represented the Moynihan family, and representatives for Activision did not immediately return requests for comment.
Kerri Moynihan was found dead in her Disneyland hotel room during an Activision company retreat in April 2017. The former finance manager was 32 years old.
Moynihan’s experiences at Activision were referenced in the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing’s ongoing workplace harassment lawsuit against Activision, though she was not named in the DFEH’s complaint last July. Both the state’s complaint and the Moynihan family’s lawsuit alleged that she was the subject of sexual harassment at work, including having pictures of her genitalia passed around by co-workers at a company holiday party in December 2016.
The Moynihan family’s lawsuit also alleged that Kerri had a sexual relationship with her boss, former Activision senior finance director Greg Restituito, and that Restituito lied to detectives investigating Moynihan’s death by failing to disclose their relationship.
The Moynihan family’s complaint was one of numerous sexual harassment lawsuits filed against Activision by current and former employees, who have alleged a workplace that was particularly toxic for women. Last fall, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick faced calls for his resignation from employees and shareholders after the Wall Street Journal reported that Kotick knew of alleged sexual assaults at the company but failed to inform Activision’s board. Activision has disputed the Journal’s reporting, claiming that there is “no evidence“ that senior executives including Kotick “ever intentionally ignored or attempted to downplay the instances of sexual harassment that occurred and were reported,“ the company said in a statement to dot.LA.
Activision is currently in the midst of being acquired by Microsoft in a deal valued at $69 billion. The transaction, which is pending regulatory approval, would be the gaming industry’s largest-ever merger.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be reached at (800) 273-8255 or by texting HELLO to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.
Update, June 2: This story has been updated to include comment from Activision on the Wall Street Journal allegations against CEO Bobby Kotick.- A Look at Activision Blizzard's Workplace Harassment Lawsuit - dot.LA ›
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Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.
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