Crazy D.C. Lawsuit Potpourri: A Discrimination Case Against Georgetown Law, and a Sidwell Friends Sex Scandal
Is Washington, D.C., the capital of... crazy lawsuits?
This is also not a new suit, although it features some new developments. From Washingtonian magazine’s Capital Comment:
The exceedingly messy lawsuit between Arthur “Terry” Newmyer and Sidwell Friends School is headed for trial—and the circle of high-profile Washingtonians wrapped up in the case is expanding. At a hearing last week, DC Superior Court judge Michael Rankin set a trial date of November 18, 2013.
Newmyer first filed suit against Sidwell and its former psychologist in May 2011. He claims the psychologist had an affair with his wife while treating his daughter, then five, and that Sidwell took “flagrant and outrageous actions” that allowed the “open sexual relationship.”
Here’s the legal-world connection: Newmyer’s now ex-wife, Tara Mehrbach Newmyer, is a lawyer. It appears that she graduated from UVA Law School in 1998 and worked at two law firms, Riker Danzig and Dickstein Shapiro, before leaving the world of Biglaw. In September 2007, she joined the national board of NARAL Pro-Choice America, the prominent abortion rights group.
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And here’s the celebrity connection:
For Sidwell — an elite private school in DC with an annual tuition of around $34,000—the lawsuit is an embarrassing airing of dirty laundry, something it normally goes to great lengths to avoid. The school’s parents, students, and alumni include many members of Washington’s most prominent families. President Obama’s two daughters attend Sidwell, as do Vice President Biden’s grandchildren; Chelsea Clinton and Al Gore III both attended the school, as did the children of cabinet secretaries, journalists, business leaders, senators, and congressmen, among others.
Terry Newmyer’s complaint, filed in May 2011, is super-salacious. In the words of one reader who alerted us to it, it’s “right up there with [Marchuk v. Monteverde] in terms of detail.”
It all started innocently enough:
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In January 2010, Sidwell’s staff psychologist, James Huntington, came to Mehrbach’s house to evaluate her daughter. He watched her play and read and asked Mehrbach a series of questions, according to court documents. The next day, a Saturday, Huntington and Mehrbach met over drinks to discuss his recommendations. Mehrbach then e-mailed Newmyer to report that Huntington had advised that their daughter needed an enriched curriculum.
Alas, according to Newmyer’s complaint, Tara Mehrbach received an “enriched curriculum” as well:
Sometime between the end of January and the beginning of February, Huntington and Mehrbach began a sexual relationship. Huntington, who was divorced, had a daughter at Sidwell in the same class as Mehrbach’s child. They would arrange play dates, according to Newmyer’s complaint, so Huntington could professionally evaluate Merhbach’s daughter. The play dates also gave the psychologist a chance to play around with Mehrbach.
If the complaint’s allegations are true, then this UVA Law grad is one frisky gal:
During the course of the affair, Huntington sent a number of sexually explicit e-mails to Mehrbach from his Sidwell account—sometimes in the middle of the workday. His e-mails, according to Newmyer’s complaint, graphically recounted their encounters, including oral and anal sex, role-playing, and “manic rubbing and touching when [Huntington is] under the influence.”
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It sounds like Tara Mehrbach’s collar wasn’t the only thing getting popped.
It’s quite the case — and it might actually go to trial, since settlement doesn’t seem to be in the cards. You can read more seamy details over at Washingtonian or in the original complaint (via Scribd).
If Arthur Newmyer prevails, Sidwell Friends should rename itself: “Sidwell Friends With Benefits.”
Georgetown Law Argues for Dismissal of Age Discrimination Lawsuit [The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times]
Trial Date Set, Bob Woodward Subpoenaed in Sidwell Friends Sex Counselor Case [Capital Comment / Washingtonian]
Newmyer v. Sidwell Friends School: Complaint [Scribd]
