LOS ANGELES (AP) A judge on Friday dismissed Nicollette Sheridan's long-running wrongful termination lawsuit against ABC over her ouster from the hit television series "Desperate Housewives."
Without ruling on the facts of the case, Superior Court Judge Michael Stern determined the actress should have exhausted her claims to a labor commissioner before pursuing a trial.
The ruling stalled Sheridan's push for a retrial on claims filed in 2010 that she was fired after she complained that show creator Marc Cherry struck her on the head on the set in 2008.
Last year, a jury deadlocked 8-4 in favor of Sheridan lawsuit alleging ABC had retaliated against her and cut her Edie Britt character due to her complaints about Cherry.
ABC denied it fired Sheridan or retaliated against her. Cherry and several executives with the show and the company previously testified that the decision to kill off the role was made before the incident with Cherry.