Fresno State President John Welty took the stand Wednesday, and said Johnson-Klein was fired for lying and inappropriate conduct of a coach.
Former employees of Fresno State's athletic department, Diane Milutinovich and Lindy Vivas, also testified and described the work environment as hostile, and a very difficult place to work.
President Welty's testimony will continue on Thursday.
Johnson-Klein is suing Fresno State for sexual discrimination, while the university claims that the former women's basketball coach misused department funds and took prescription drugs from her players."
As more testimony is revealed, I will update.
"Here's a snap shot: Johnson-Klein will have to confront allegations of prescription pain medication addiction. During an evidentiary hearing this week, university attorneys claimed between October 25, 2004 and February 9, 2005, Johnson-Klein obtained 900 pills of hydrocodone and oxycontin from multiple doctors. Her attorney Warren Paboojian agreed in court that the former women's basketball coach took a bottle of prescription pain pills from a student, and Johnson-Klein suffered pain from a car accident in Oklahoma. The hearing is not a time for him to defend his client's actions. But her attorneys were successful in excluding other details of Johnson-Klein's personal life. Jurors WON'T hear about the following: her "lipoplasty" (aka liposuction), child custody disputes or divorce/disputes of Stacy Johnson-Klein or her husband Chuck Klein, testimony from prior nannies regarding disputes between Johnson-Klein and the nannies. Attorneys did not discuss those topics in court.
Fresno State also faces tough challenges. During a previous hearing, details surfaced for the first time in public about former men's basketball coach Ray Lopes. The judge is allowing Ray Lopes to testify, and the university will have to explain why Lopes received approximately $200,000 in compensation to resign from Fresno State. Johnson-Klein's attorneys want to know why Lopes received the compensation when he faced 457 major NCAA violations Johnson-Klein was reportedly not offered the same."