A San Bernardino Superior Court judge has tentatively ruled against Montclair City Councilmember Ben Lopez in a lawsuit accusing him of sexually harassing two city employees .

In December 2021, Edmund Garcia , a senior information technology specialist with the city, and Michael Fuentes , director of economic development, sued Lopez and the city after the pair had complained to upper management earlier in the year that they’d been harassed by the councilmember, according to Brian Hannemann, an attorney for the plaintiffs.

Four years after Garcia and Fuentes filed suit, Judge Kory Mathewson on Friday, Dec. 5, made a tentative ruling against Lopez. The judge awarded each plaintiff $350,000 in past damages, along with $50,000 in future damages.

The judge awarded the city of Montc

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