Earlier in the week he was convicted of a misdemeanor for allegedly groping a teen-age client. The appeals case stems from a 1994 lawsuit filed by five employees of Visual Changes, a now-defunct salon formerly owned and operated by Creager. Although the jury rejected most of the plaintiffs legal claims, including sexual harassment and wrongful discharge, it ruled for three of them on the charge of battery. The fourth employee dropped out of the case mid-trial and the trial judge dismissed the fifth. Creager appealed, arguing the punitive damages were out of proportion to the economic damages.
Punitive damages are punishment for civil wrongdoing, typically against businesses.
Such damages are not always allowed by the courts, and can only be awarded in addition to economic damages for malicious or willful misconduct. Attorneys for the employees have not decided yet whether to seek a new trial on the fifth employee s claim for breach of contract claim. Creager, who represented himself on appeal, declined comment Friday. In an unrelated matter, Creager pleaded no contest Monday to a misdemeanor charge of sexual harassment stemming from allegations he groped two teenage customers last September. According to a prosecutor, one of the victims said she had fallen asleep while receiving a facial from Creager.