USC is reportedly being sued by a former high-ranking employee in its athletic department. That lawsuit alleges that the university allowed former athletic director Mike Bohn to racially harass and discriminate against her.

Ryan Kartje with the LA Times reported that Joyce Bell Limbrick was once the highest-ranking female and Black official in the USC athletic department. In her lawsuit, Bell Limbrick claims her career was irreparably changed when Bohn was hired by USC in 2019.

Bohn resigned from his post in 2023 after previous stops as the AD at Cincinnati, Colorado, San Diego State and Idaho. According to Kartje, the resignation of Bohn came quickly after the LA Times inquired about internal criticism of Bohn’s management of the athletic department. The Times also reported that Bohn was found to be under investigation for racial and gender discrimination at Cincinnati at the time he was hired to lead the Trojans.

”[Bohn’s] incessant, racially charged remarks made Joyce feel uncomfortable and undervalued, but more than that — he actively isolated her from the executive team and undermined her work. She already was vulnerable as the only Black woman on the team, and rather than support her, the university allowed Bohn to make her life hell,” said Bell Limbrick’s attorney, J. Bernard Alexander, in a statement.

Kartje reports Bell Limbrick’s lawsuit includes detailed claims about Bohn’s conduct, including one instance of unwanted touching. According to Bell Limbrick, Bohn once punched her on the arm at a USC volleyball match in October 2022.

Bell Limbrick was eventually fired in September 2023 around 4 months after Bohn’s resignation, a move that stunned Bell Limbrick and one that she believes was “no coincidence,” per Kartje due to the timing of the decision and her voicing concerns about Bohn. Her lawsuit against USC includes allegations of race and gender harassment, discrimination, retaliation and the failure to prevent discrimination and retaliation.