Former Richmond City Council liaison Jennifer M. Walle has filed a second federal employment discrimination complaint against the city, claiming she was fired for reporting that she had been sexually harassed by a co-worker.
Walle’s latest complaint was filed Monday with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, according to a copy released Thursday by her attorney, D. Hayden Fisher. The complaint follows an EEOC complaint filed in January, in which Walle claims she was subjected to a sexually hostile work environment and retaliation.
City Council President Kathy C. Graziano released a statement in response to Walle's filing.
“Jennifer and her attorney are attempting to try this complaint in the media. I believe it is best for all of us to respect the legal process that is in motion and where testimony is given under oath. … I am not going to engage in a media battle.”
City Attorney Allen L. Jackson was not immediately available for comment Thursday.
In her new filing, Walle said the work environment at City Hall had become “so hostile” by late March that she and her boss, 1st District City Councilman Bruce W. Tyler, agreed that she should take an unpaid leave of absence for an undetermined length of time. Walle’s filing said she “was subjected to rude comments made by other councilmen and employees” who are not identified.
The filing also describes a timeline of correspondence from the city concerning Walle’s employment status.
According to the filing, Walle received on April 3 a letter from City Clerk Lou B. Ali that was dated March 25. The letter stated that Walle needed “to respond no later than March 28, 2011.”
Walle said she received on April 6 another letter stating that she had been terminated because she had not responded by March 28 as requested.
Ali’s initial letter, which Walle had received April 3, was “sent to the wrong address and forwarded to me past the date I was expected to respond,” Walle said in her filing.
“I believe that I was discharged in retaliation for filing an EEOC charge and complaining of sexual harassment.”
Walle’s original complaint, which the city has requested for dismissal, stems from an alleged incident April 21, 2010, in which Walle says she was subjected to “unwelcome sexual touching and comments” by David R. Hathcock, 4th District liaison to Graziano. That complaint also accuses Graziano of retaliation after Walle attempted to report the incident.
Walle also has a civil lawsuit that’s pending against Graziano and Hathcock. In May, Hathcock agreed to undergo workplace-sensitivity training and 100 hours of community service as part of a deal with city prosecutors to drop misdemeanor charges of sexual battery and assault brought by Walle.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement