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Robert De Niro's ex-personal assistant testified Tuesday that he relegated her to "demeaning" tasks that were stereotypically given to women — like washing his bedsheets, going jewelry shopping, and researching private schools for his child.
Graham Chase Robinson, 41, worked for the "Goodfellas" star's vanity company, Canal Productions, for 11 years. She then sued him for $12 million in a federal discrimination claim, claiming he was an abusive boss.
One time in 2016, for example, De Niro called Robinson after getting into a fight with his wife.
"Bob called me to berate me about a scheduling thing," Robinson testified in Manhattan federal court. "He screamed at me and then hung up and then called me back."
"He said, 'You're being a bitch,'" she added. "It was common."
De Niro's attorney pressed Robinson on why she never filed a formal harassment complaint, despite being the point person for these types of issued involving other employees at the company.
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Robinson said she didn't file the paperwork because she feared retaliation from De Niro.
Robinson admitted on the stand that she held on to computer equipment, gift cards, petty cash and other property that belonged to Canal Productions or De Niro for about a year. She returned the goods after the company filed a lawsuit against her, she testified.
After Robinson left the witness stand, Dr. Robert L. Goldstein, a psychiatrist, testified as an expert witness that Robinson suffered from insomnia, IBS, and GERD from "generalized anxiety disorder." He said the disorder was prompted by her perception that she was discriminated against at Canal Productions, and retaliated against after she quit.
Robinson's mother was expected to testify after the lunch break Tuesday.
