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Jury Returns $1.5 Million Verdict In Age Discrimination Suit Against Liat Involving Former USVI Employee

A jury on St. Croix returned a verdict on Tuesday in favor of a former USVI employee of Liat, who had worked for the airline for 47 years and was suddenly let go. The plaintiff, William Cherubin and his attorneys alleged that Liat, who argued that Mr. Cherubin was fired because of poor performance, actually fired him because of his age. "The reason Liat gave was false; the real reason was age discrimination," Attorney Vince Colianni of Colianni and Colianni told The Consortium on Wednesday. Mr. Cherubin was 71 when his was let go by Liat in 2015.  Virgin Islands law prohibits the firing of an individual because of age. "We're very pleased. We think the verdict sends a message to Liat that it can't fire Virgin Islands employees because of age. It shows that the VI protects its citizens," Mr. Colianni said.  The two-day trial started on Monday and ended on Tuesday. Mr. Colianni said he expected Liat to appeal the case to the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands, where he is als...