Posted on 10/09/2020 1:55:02 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The studio's president of North American TV distribution has been let go after an incident involving a coworker. Lionsgate has fired one of its executives for allegedly having a gun on company premises.
Sources say the studio's president of North American TV distribution Jared Goetz has been let go for violating company policy. The gun was discovered when Goetz who was working in Lionsgate's Santa Monica offices in September drove a coworker to lunch last month.
In the car, he allegedly opened up about having his house broken into and being attacked in his car at a stoplight recently. The two incidents led him to get a gun for protection, he allegedly told the coworker. He then revealed that he had the gun in the car with them, sources say.
Before heading in the restaurant for lunch with his colleague, Goetz is said to have transferred the gun from his car into a fanny pack he was wearing in the restaurant. There is a dispute about whether the gun was loaded or not. Both Lionsgate and Goetz declined to comment.
A source says Goetz never actually brought the gun into the Lionsgate offices but that he did have it in his car in the parking lot, which qualifies as company premises and is therefore a violation of Lionsgate's policy. He was subsequently let go for the breach, and today is his last day at the studio.
Bryan Freedman, Goetzs attorney, responded with the following statement: "Jared had his home burglarized and during the pandemic was attacked in his car at while at a stop light on Reseda Boulevard. He owned a hand gun that was properly licensed. Consistent with past actions, he had plans to go to the shooting range after work and train with Officer Daryl Scoggins of the West Valley police department. As Lionsgate confirmed, this was a one time incident, wherein he never took the gun into the office nor did he remove it from the lock box in the car while he was at work. He never showed it to anyone nor did he threaten or let anyone even see it. It was properly and legally secured and there was no one else who had ever seen it Jared has alway been a model employee. He has never been involved in anything even close to disciplinary action in more than 25 years of working for companies. He is well liked and an honorable person. He never intended in any way to make anyone uncomfortable nor did he do anything illegal In fact, there are no allegations that he attempted to scare or threaten anyone. While he has reasons for self protection, he is terribly sorry for this matter and realizes while the gun was properly secured in his vehicle, leaving it in his car in the parking lot was against company policy. He has had tremendous success while at Lionsgate which has led to him being approached with other incredible opportunities. He is focusing on those opportunities and wishes that this was not such a difficult and unsafe time for everyone."
In his role at the independent studio, he was responsible for leading the licensing team and selling content across broadcast, cable, pay TV and SVOD. Before joining Lionsgate in 2017, Goetz spent 22 years at Disney, where he was responsible for the sales of first-run syndicated hits including Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Live With Regis and Kelly and Grey's Anatomy.
They get what they voted for.
Have a condom in your wallet and you are a hero.
Any relation to Bernard Goetz?
A whole lot of double-talk in that statement.
Ping
Kalifornia doesn't have a gun storage law.
He was let go for other reason, the gun was just the excuse.
Ping
Always carry unloaded. You never know when you might want to grovel for your job back.
Could be. He was overheard telling his fellow studio execs, “I’ve got five dollars for each of you.”
Yep.
Goetz got a police-state snitch.
It is time for Lionsgate to get some letters, emails and phone calls.
“He was let go for other reason, the gun was just the excuse.”
Yep. That was my thought also.
At most this should have been a warning. And, if they really wanted to be A-holes, they could have put a letter in his personnel file. (For those who don’t have to deal with employment BS this is a, do-it-again-and-you’re-fired.)
Whatever they really wanted to fire him for, it was personal and not business related. Maybe he had a Trump2020 sticker on his bumper.
How many concealed carry permits are issued in L.A. county (population 10 million)?
“Always carry unloaded.”
Makes as much sense as driving a car with no gas in it.
I thought he said he was his was to the gun range after work ?..
discussed many times at my j o b over the years, out of sight out of mind .
MADNESS! SHEER MADNESS!
I hope Goetz has a great, junk yard dog-mean lawyer!
The “co-worker” is an a-hole...perhaps had their eye on Goetz’s position? Such a sh*tty thing to do.
Allow guns.
Criminals aren’t going to abide by the rules anyway.
Best to have some law abiding citizens armed.
So an employee goes postal with a gun he brought in legally.
Is that any different than bringing one from home and using
it instead? Not really. A criminal with a gun situation
presents either way.
Known guns on a premasis reduces the chances someone will
use a gun in a business. Fellow employees aren’t going to
let the courts resolve the issue. They will.
Less repeat business. Other employees get an education.
Great outcome.
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