Former Sacramento Kings announcer and KHTK host Grant Napear has lost a suit against Bonneville International, claiming the company showed bias against his religious beliefs, race and gender.
Napear was fired by Bonneville in 2020 after he tweeted “All lives matter” in response to a question about the Black Lives Matter protests and riots that gripped the nation in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. He filed the suit in federal district court in California alleging his termination was a violation of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act. Additionally, Napear believed the firing was retaliation, a violation of the state labor code.
Judge Dale Drozd was not convinced by the arguments made by Napear’s lawyer. Drozd granted Bonneville’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
“At bottom, [the] plaintiff has not alleged facts sufficient to support the inference that his termination was because of his religion as opposed to an obvious alternative explanation, such as that the substance and timing of plaintiff’s May 31, 2020 tweet were ‘particularly insensitive,’ or did ‘not reflect the views or values of [defendant],” Judge Drozd wrote.
The judge did allow Napear to amend his complaint against the company. His attorney, Matthew Ruggles, was optimistic they can advance the case they have.
Napear had been calling Kings games since 1988 and had been a host on KHTK since 1995 when he was dismissed. The company argued that Napear was ultimately let go because the tweet was insensitive.
