Woman Sues Carroll Shelby for Sexual Harassment

Carroll Shelby, one of the prolific personalities in the automotive industry and the designer of the famous Mustang Cobras, has recently been dragged into a lawsuit that sees the American designer accused of sexual harassment. Angelica Smith, Shelby’s former secretary, also claims she was raped by another employee, and then fired.

The scandal, brought to light by TMZ, is built around a story that claims that Shelby treated Angelica Smith as a “personal servant,” alleging that she was sent to get liquor and pornography, and that Shelby ran a "pervasively hostile work environment."

The suit also claims that one of Shelby’s employees drugged and raped Smith in December 2010 while at Shelby’s home. The woman also claims she went to Shelby to tell him about the incident but that he did not take any action. Moreover, she got fired following the incident.

Smith, who reportedly began working for Shelby back in 2005, filed her lawsuit in L.A. County Superior Court earlier today, seeking over $5 million in damages.

Carroll Shelby's attorney fired back later in the day, releasing the following statement to Jalopnik:

“Carroll Shelby is disappointed that such wild and fantastical allegations have been made by a former employee. The fact is that her position was no longer required due to Mr. Shelby's age, health and work schedule. But this apparently disgruntled former employee and her counsel have chosen to turn this into yet another prematurely publicized, frivolous lawsuit against a public figure. Carroll Shelby has full confidence in the judicial system and believes that the truth will come out through the legal process.”