Ex-cheerleader drops lawsuit vs. Northwestern

A federal lawsuit alleging sex trafficking and forced labor against Northwestern University and four employees, including former athletic director Mike Polisky, has been dropped by the plaintiff, a former cheerleader at the school.

Attorneys representing Hayden Richardson on Monday filed a stipulation to dismiss with prejudice.

Richardson, a member of the cheer squad from 2018 to 2020, filed the lawsuit against the school in January 2021, alleging she and others experienced groping and sexually charged comments from fans and alumni at tailgates and donor events. The lawsuit alleged Northwestern and several employees, including Polisky, then the deputy athletic director, and spirit squad coordinator Pamela Bonnevier, ignored complaints by Richardson and other cheer squad members. A status hearing in the case had been set for Oct. 8.

Polisky was promoted to athletic director in May 2021 but resigned under pressure nine days later, following backlash from media and protests in and around campus. He has been working in the sports industry for a company in Chicago but hasn’t returned to college athletics.

“This was a life-stopping event that I had absolutely no control over, even though we all knew the truth,” Polisky told ESPN on Wednesday. “This was not some sort of outcome that is a surprise, but I’m very sad. I lost an absolutely dream job at a wonderful place, and it’s time for me to be able to move past this. I’m at least appreciative of that opportunity.”

Polisky served as Northwestern’s top deputy athletic director from 2010 until his resignation, and was long seen as the successor to Jim Phillips, who left to become ACC commissioner. Polisky developed the athletic department’s marketing slogan, “Chicago’s Big Ten team,” that is still used.

“I’m sure that most of us would have chosen different ways of responding at the time, but it’s a very sensitive situation and there are real victims out there, and you can’t come across as un-empathetic to those folks,” Polisky said when asked whether he or Northwestern would have responded differently to the backlash in 2021. “It was a tough spot for everybody. I just wish it never would have happened. I cannot and will not look back any further. It’s not helpful to anybody involved in this.”

Polisky’s attorneys at the Jones Day law firm in Chicago called the dismissal “a complete vindication,” adding “we are gratified that justice has finally been done, but nothing can restore the damage that was wrongfully done to Mr. Polisky’s name.”

No settlements were reached with any of the parties involved in the lawsuit, Polisky’s attorneys said.

In 2023, Northwestern denied Richardson’s allegations, saying it “promptly” addressed the concerns she raised in 2019 and 2020, which it said did not outline the sexual trafficking accusations in her lawsuit. The school fired Bonnevier in 2020 after an investigation by its Office of Equity into her conduct.

Bonnevier and two other former employees — deputy Title IX coordinator Amanda DaSilva and associate athletic director for marketing Heather Van Hoegarden — had separate filings disputing the lawsuit.

“Since Hayden Richardson’s lawsuit was filed over three years ago, Northwestern has steadfastly maintained that her claims should be dismissed,” the university said in a statement to ESPN on Wednesday. “She has now voluntarily dismissed her lawsuit against all defendants. The university is committed to fostering an environment in which all members of our community are safe, secure and free from discrimination or harassment in any form.”