A Los Angeles jury has ordered Kanye West to pay $140,000 to Tony Saxon, a former handyman and project manager. The payment covers medical costs for a neck injury Saxon sustained while working on West’s Malibu mansion. While the jury found the musician liable for the physical damage to his employee, they rejected Saxon’s claim for wrongful termination.
The two-week trial ended with a payout far below the $1.7 million Saxon originally sought.
Saxon claimed he was promised $20,000 per week to oversee the gutting of the architectural property but received only a single payment.
The worker alleged he was forced to sleep on the floor of the construction site.
Testimony focused on the absence of safety equipment and the lack of Workers’ Compensation Insurance for those tearing the building apart.
The Spectacle of Disinterest
On the witness stand, West—now legally known as Ye—appeared to drift in and out of consciousness. Jurors reported that the defendant frequently closed his eyes for long stretches, his head dropping forward before snapping back up. When questioned about his business, Yeezy Construction, the musician told the court he was unsure if he held the title of CEO.
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"He wasn’t sleeping, he was bored," a juror later told reporters, noting that the performer’s behavior "left them cold."
Bianca Censori, West’s wife, also testified. She abandoned her typical public wardrobe for a conservative outfit, appearing almost unrecognizable to the court. The defense team had initially demanded that Saxon pay them and issue a public apology before the verdict was reached.
Wage and Injury Breakdown
| Claim Category | Jury Finding | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Medical Expenses | Liable | For neck injuries sustained on-site. |
| Wrongful Termination | Not Liable | Jury found no malice in the firing. |
| Total Awarded | $140,000 | Initial demand was $1.7 Million. |
| Employment Status | Employee | Defense failed to prove he was an independent contractor. |
Patterns of Dysfunction
The Malibu project involved stripping a celebrated concrete house of its windows and electricity. Saxon testified that the work was done without Permits to keep the "gutting" discreet. This case is one of several involving the Donda founder, with former teachers and staff alleging hostile environments and erratic management.
Legal teams for both sides are now reviewing the verdict for possible appeals.
Saxon’s lawyer, Ronald Zambrano, characterized the environment as one of "extraordinary dysfunction."
West's inability to recall basic actions regarding the property served as a primary hurdle for his own defense.
The trial highlights the friction between high-concept celebrity "art" projects and the mundane safety requirements of the California labor code. While West avoids the multi-million dollar hit his former employee wanted, the trial leaves a public record of a construction project managed with zero oversight and a lack of basic industrial care.
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