Settlement close in sexual assault suit

The young woman who testified against Greg Haidl, the son of a former Orange County assistant sheriff, in a well-publicized sexual assault trial has reached a tentative settlement in her civil lawsuit.

Attorney Sheldon Lodmer, who represents the plaintiff known only as Jane Doe, declined to specify the terms of the settlement and said the agreement still needed a judge’s approval. The settlement would resolve a lawsuit Doe filed in December 2005 against Haidl, co-defendants Kyle Nachreiner and Keith Spann, Haidl’s father, Don Haidl, and their defense team.

Lodmer said the settlement, if reached, would close the case legally. Greg Haidl, Nachreiner and Spann were convicted in March 2005 of sexual assault and are serving six-year prison sentences. The men were found guilty of sexually assaulting Doe — with videotape recording the incident — at a Corona del Mar house party in July 2002.

“If everything works out correctly, we should have it in the next week or two,” Lodmer said about the settlement, which he plans to submit to Orange County Superior Court Judge Stephen J. Sundvold.

About how Jane Doe was faring five years after the assault, he said, “Could be better. Could be worse. She’s holding her own.”

The announcement from Lodmer over the weekend came shortly before an indictment, unsealed Tuesday, named Don Haidl as a partner in an alleged corruption scheme with Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona. Haidl pleaded guilty to income tax fraud in March and is not indicted in the case. He is scheduled to be sentenced in June.

MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at [email protected].