Former Pressley Ridge CEO settles sexual assault case

A North Side nonprofit, one of its former employees and its former top executive settled a federal lawsuit in which the employee accused the executive of sexually assaulting her and the executive countersued for defamation.

Attorneys for Pressley Ridge, former CEO B. Scott Finnell and the woman who filed the lawsuit confirmed the case is settled. Under terms of the settlement, they cannot comment beyond a joint statement they issued on Thursday.

The woman claimed in the 2010 lawsuit that Finnell, 55, routinely hypnotized and sexually assaulted her and that she was fired after filing a complaint about his behavior. Finnell denied the allegations and sued her and her attorney for defamation over remarks the woman made in a TV interview.

The Tribune-Review does not identify accusers in sexual assault cases.

Pressley Ridge -- which helps children with developmental, behavioral and emotional disorders -- said in court documents that an independent attorney found the woman's claims to be baseless and that she complained only after receiving a final warning that she could be fired for poor job performance.

The press release says the woman now "acknowledges that during these sessions, Dr. Finnell treated her in a professional and respectful manner."

Finnell resigned from Pressley Ridge after the lawsuit was filed and retired to Austin, Texas.