Kia Vaughn, one of the Rutgers girls described as a “Nappy Headed Ho,” announced Tuesday, through her attorney Richard Ancowitz, that

Kia Vaughn

According to The Associated Press, Ms. Vaughn filed the lawsuit in state Supreme Court in the Bronx, the same day that it was announced that Imus and CBS had settled their lawsuit. The timing, her attorney claimed was coincidental. CBS reportedly agreed to a 20 million dollar settlement with Don Imus. Vaughn’s lawsuit is the first announced legal action by any of the Rutgers players. The lawsuit claims Imus and Bernard McGuirk along with CBS Corp and CBS Radio are legally responsible for damage done to her character and reputation. 

When asked by CNN’s Anderson Cooper, if her attorney expects to settle the case. Ancowitz insisted that she wants the case to go to trial.  "This is about Kia Vaughn's good name," Ancowitz said. "She would do anything to return to her life as a student and respected basketball player — a more simple life before Imus opened his mouth on April 4."

Joe Scarborough makes an excellent point in saying “until Kia Vaughn filed this lawsuit no one never heard of her. They heard of the Rutgers girls but certainly not Kia Vaughn. Ms. Vaughn has through the filing of this law  suit made sure that her name will be forever associated with the “Nappy headed Ho’s, statement.

In the opinion of this reporter this case will never go to trial despite the self-serving protestations of Kia Vaughn’s attorney, who contradicted himself in his CNN interview. After insisting that his client’s goal was to go to court to reclaim her good name, later in the interview Ancowitz said “You know what, very often in this business and in other businesses you hear this phrase it’s not about the money, well in this case it kind of is about the money. Kia would like to set up a scholarship fund that would chair research and study the issue of bad speech, of foul speech, of evil and malevolence, in society, especially racist and misogynists and sexist speech.” 

Cooper asked, “would she want something for herself or would she be happy with something that sets up this scholarship you talk about?”  Ancowitz responded, “remains to be seen, but she wants to do the right thing very much,” Translation, yes.

At first glance this may appear to be a ridiculous lawsuit, a step above the “lost pants” 54 million dollar lawsuit filed by the DC judge, which he lost and was subsequently charged with the legal bill of the defendant.  However, Kia may have struck gold considering that Imus may want to capitalize on this opportunity to generate some good will by contributing to a fund to study the dreaded “evil speech.”