Local

Lesbian officers accuse D.C. police of discrimination

Mendelson urges city to settle lawsuit charging harassment, retaliation

Published

10 years ago

August 15, 2012

‘I would hope that the department has gotten better since the time of these allegations,’ said acting D.C. City Council Chair Phil Mendelson about a bias lawsuit filed by two lesbian police officers. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Acting D.C. City Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) said he would like to see the city’s attorney general consider settling a little noticed discrimination lawsuit filed against the District in January 2011 by two lesbian members of the Metropolitan Police Department.

Det. Kennis M. Weeks and Officer Tonia L. Jones charge in a 38-page complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that they’ve been subjected to discrimination, harassment and retaliation based on their sexual orientation and sex since September 2006, when they disclosed they were in a same-sex relationship.

“One would hope the alleged conduct is no longer continuing,” said Mendelson, who chairs the Council committee that oversees the police department. “And I would hope that the department has gotten better since the time of these allegations.”

The lawsuit charges that at least seven sergeants, two lieutenants, and three officers from the Seventh District – along with Seventh District Commander Joel Maupin – played some role in carrying out the alleged discrimination.

Police officials “created and tolerated an environment in which employees could harass plaintiffs on the basis of their sex and sexual orientation without any investigation or repercussions,” the lawsuit says.

It says Weeks and Jones filed complaints of discrimination based on sexual orientation and sexual harassment in October 2007 with the police department’s Equal Employment Opportunity Compliance Division.

“On Nov. 19, 2007, MDP’s Assistant Chief, Peter Newsham, made a decision not to investigate plaintiff’s internal EEO complaints,” the lawsuit says.

Cathy Harris, the attorney representing the two women, said Newsham instead told them they should file their complaint with the city’s Office of Human Rights.

“They were shocked that the department wouldn’t address this internally,” Harris said.

When asked about the case following an Aug. 9 news conference on an unrelated issue, Newsham told the Blade he couldn’t discuss details of a pending case.

“With regards to any lawsuits, you know that people draw up whatever type of complaint they want, and just because someone raises those issues doesn’t mean they’re true,” he said. “Things have to be verified and investigated. So I think it’s premature to draw any conclusion from a civil complaint that’s filed somewhere,” he said.

D.C. police spokesperson Gwendolyn Crump said police are referring all inquires about the case to the D.C. Attorney General’s office, which is defending the city against the lawsuit in court.

Ted Gest, a spokesperson for D.C. Attorney General Irvin Nathan, said his office also had no comment on the case. Gest said that at the present time, the office’s response to the case – Tonia L. Jones and Kennis M. Weeks vs. the District of Columbia – is reflected in their court filings.

The court filings on behalf of the city contest some of the claims made by Weeks and Jones on procedural and technical grounds, saying their attorneys missed filing deadlines requiring that the claims be dismissed. A March 23, 2011 brief filed by Nathan and three other attorneys from the Attorney General’s office disputes several of Weeks and Jones’ discrimination allegations on the merits, saying Seventh District supervisors based their actions on standard personnel practices rather than discrimination.

On July 25, U.S. District Court Judge Rosemary M. Collyer approved a motion by the city calling for dismissal of several of the claims in the case, including those alleging that the police action violated Weeks and Jones’ First Amendment constitutional right of freedom of speech by allegedly retaliating against them when they filed an internal police grievance about the alleged discrimination.

Collyer also dismissed the plaintiff’s claim that police and the city violated their Fourteenth Amendment rights to due process and equal protection under the law.

But the judge left in place most of Weeks and Jones’ other claims of sexual orientation discrimination under the D.C. Human Rights Act and sex discrimination under Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In her ruling, Collyer noted that the D.C. Office of Human Rights found probable cause in several of the lawsuit’s allegations that police officials committed sexual orientation and sex discrimination against Weeks and Jones in violation of the D.C. Human Rights Act. Attorneys for Weeks and Jones have since transferred the case from the Human Rights Office to the court’s jurisdiction.

In its brief contesting the lawsuit, the D.C. Attorney General’s office argued that the Office of Human Rights also found no probable cause that “plaintiffs were subjected to disparate treatment on the bases of sexual orientation and sex” regarding their specific allegation that they were not allowed to ride together in a police cruiser on patrol duty.

The attorney general’s brief also says no probable cause was found for an allegation in the lawsuit that a decision to give police cases that Jones was working on to male detectives was based on discrimination.

A court scheduling conference is set for Aug. 28, where court observers say a trial date might be scheduled.

Mendelson said he was unaware of the lawsuit until the Blade informed him about it last week and provided him with an online link to the complaint.

“Of course we don’t know what the facts are because this is still pending in court,” Mendelson said. “It’s discouraging to read this kind of alleged conduct. And of course the judicial process is one where the facts will be determined,” he said.

“I would hope that the police department is addressing this and the attorney general is looking at whether it would be better for the District to just settle the case and ensure that this kind of conduct no longer occurs,” Mendelson said.

Although filed in January 2011, the case received no known news media coverage until Aug. 3, when Courthouse News Service published an online story reporting that Judge Collyer dismissed some of the claims in the case while upholding others. Three days later, Huffington Post published a similar story with the link to the Courthouse News Service story.

News of the case is likely to raise concern among LGBT activists, who have been assured by D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier that anti-LGBT bias within the ranks of the department was mostly a thing of the past and that the department doesn’t tolerate such bias.

The lawsuit says the alleged discrimination and harassment began in September 2006 after Weeks and Jones told one of their supervisors at the Seventh District, Sgt. Jon Podorski, that they were a couple. The two had been squad car partners since early 2006 and began a relationship in July of that year, the lawsuit says.

“Almost immediately thereafter, the sergeants began harassing them and subjecting them to a hostile working environment on a frequent and continuing basis,” the suit says.

“Plaintiffs complained about the discrimination to MPD in January 2007,” it says. “However, this had the effect of continuing and increasing the harassment and hostile work environment.”

According to the lawsuit, several of the sergeants named in the suit continuously made derogatory comments about Weeks and Jones in the presence of fellow officers and supervisors. Among other things, the suit says the sergeants – who served as Weeks and Jones’ supervisors – urged them to have sex with men, with one sergeant referring to Jones as the “butch one” and Weeks as the “femme one.”

During a May 2007 party in which many Seventh District officers were in attendance, one sergeant shouted in a loud voice to both Jones and Weeks, “Do you wanna fuck?” the lawsuit says.

“Plaintiffs were mortified, embarrassed and threatened by this verbal assault, which was within earshot of many of their colleagues,” the suit says.

In September 2007 an officer told Weeks and Jones he wanted to watch them have sex and that he would “pay them $5,000 for the opportunity to do so,” the lawsuit says.

“On February 17, 2009, someone put an open tampon and parts of the tampon wrapper on plaintiff Weeks’ desk,” it says. “Plaintiff Weeks reported the incident to defendant and requested an official investigation. Defendant never initiated an investigation,” according to the lawsuit.

Attorney Harris said the two women were shocked and horrified over an October 2006 incident that occurred shortly after they informed Podorski of their relationship.

“Plaintiffs and Sgt. Podorski responded to a call on Stanton Road regarding an alleged assault with a deadly weapon,” the lawsuit says. “The matter concerned a mother, a relative and a child. The mother and relative had responded violently after the child had informed them that she was gay.”

The lawsuit continues: “Plaintiffs intended to arrest the mother and the relative for the violent offenses. But Sgt. Podorski instructed the plaintiffs to instead take the child to the Psychiatric Institute of Washington and have her committed because she was gay,” the lawsuit says.

“He also stated that no arrest should be made because it was ‘only’ a domestic disturbance. Plaintiffs objected to this order,” the lawsuit says. “Sgt. Podorski was later investigated by the MPD for this incident and, upon information and belief, he was suspended. Nevertheless, despite the complaints made by plaintiffs about Podorski’s harassment and his discriminatory conduct, he has never been disciplined for his harassment of plaintiffs,” the lawsuit alleges.

Harris said her clients separated as a couple over a year ago, in part, due to the stress they encountered from the harassment and discrimination charged in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit, among other things, calls for compensatory damages and back pay for what Jones claims is the loss of a promotion due to bias on the part of police officials.

“I really want to make it clear about my clients,” Harris said. “They’re not doing it because of the money. They’re doing it because what happened to them was wrong and they want to make sure that this doesn’t happen to any other officer or detective or employee of the MPD, no matter what their sexual orientation or gender is.”

Harris said she never informed the media about the case because Weeks and Jones were hopeful that the case could be resolved quietly.

“They were not seeking publicity – just relief and justice,” she said.

Now that the case is beginning to receive public attention, Harris added, “Anything the gay community can do to help D.C. understand that this is totally unacceptable and should be resolved – we’re happy to get that support.”

“Even though this case is still under investigation, the allegations show a deeper homophobia present in MPD than leadership, including Chief Lanier, publicly acknowledges,” A.J. Singletary, chair of Gays and Lesbians Opposing Violence (GLOV) told the Blade, Wednesday. “Rather than fight the charges on procedural and technical grounds, GLOV urges MPD to investigate the actual allegations and fix not only the specific issue with the two women involved but also the broader problem of homophobia within MPD.”

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Local

Brett Parson waives right to attend arraignment after not guilty plea

Former D.C. police lieutenant charged with unlawful sex with minor

Published

2 days ago

April 22, 2022

Lou Chibbaro Jr.

Former D.C. police lieutenant Brett Parson was arrested in February in Florida. (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Former D.C. police lieutenant Brett Parson, who was arrested in Coconut Creek, Fla., in February for allegedly having sex with a 16-year-old boy, waived his right to attend his April 19 court arraignment after pleading not guilty and requesting a trial by jury in a written motion filed by his lawyer on March 1.

Online records from the Broward County Circuit Court, where Parson’s case is pending, show that the arraignment was held as scheduled. The records show a judge who is not identified in the online records scheduled a follow-up “Calendar Call” hearing for May 20 to allow prosecutors and the defense to deliberate over how to proceed with the case.

Prosecutors with the Broward County State Attorney’s Office charged Parson with two counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor following his arrest for allegedly engaging in oral sex with a 16-year-old he met on the Growlr gay dating app, which requires people using the site to be 18 or older. Sources familiar with the app say the age restriction is not enforced.

An arrest affidavit says the 16-year-old told police he and Parson met on the dating app, exchanged “explicit” photos of each other, and arranged to meet at a location in Coconut Creek near where the 16-year-old lived. It says the two, who were in separate cars, drove to a second location in a secluded parking lot around 1 a.m., where the 16-year-old entered Parson’s car and they engaged in mutual oral sex.

After becoming concerned that they might be seen by people in that location, the affidavit says the 16-year-old persuaded Parson that they each drive their cars to another location. While following each other, police in the area saw the 16-year-old drive into a restricted location owned by Comcast, according to the affidavit. It says police stopped the youth and questioned him while officers in a separate car stopped Parson but allowed him to drive away after he told them he was from out of the area and wasn’t sure where he was.

Without giving a reason, the affidavit says the 16-year-old provided police with full details of his interaction with Parson that police would otherwise not have known at the time they stopped him for driving into a restricted space.

The affidavit makes it clear that the 16-year-old, who is not identified, consented to the sexual encounter. But authorities point out that Florida’s age of consent is 18 and a minor at the age of 16 or 17 cannot legally consent to sexual acts with someone older than 24 under Florida law.

It says that after questioning the 16-year-old, Coconut Creek police contacted his parents, who requested that charges be brought against Parson. The affidavit says police identified Parson through the 16-year-old’s phone, which he used to exchange text messages and photos with Parson.

Court records show that a judge on Feb. 18, six days after his arrest, set bond for Parson’s release at $25,000 for each of the two charges of unlawful sexual activity with a minor, for a total of $50,000. The Blade couldn’t determine at that time if Parson was able to pay the required 10 percent of the bond at $5,000. A check with the Broward County Jail in Fort Lauderdale where most arrestees are held showed Parson was not being held there as of Feb. 18.

However, the current updated court records show that bond for Parson was posted on Feb. 21, raising the question of whether he was held someplace in custody until that time.

A spokesperson for the Broward County State Attorney’s Office, which prosecutes criminal cases, confirmed that neither Parson nor his attorney attended the April 19 arraignment, but declined to comment further, saying the office never discusses pending cases.

Court records identify Parson’s attorney as Michael E. Dutko, whose law office website says he worked as a Fort Lauderdale police officer and prosecutor prior to starting his criminal law practice. Dutko did not respond to phone and email messages from the Washington Blade seeking comment on the Parson case.

Court records also show that upon his release, a judge ordered Parson to remain in Florida at the residence of his parents in Boca Raton, who he had been visiting at the time of his arrest, while his case remained pending.

Parson served as supervisor for the D.C. police LGBT Liaison Unit and later as head of the division overseeing all the department’s community liaison units before he retired from the force in 2020 after a 26-year police career. At the time of his retirement, he announced he was starting a consulting business to advise law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad on police-related issues.

D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee, while saying he could not comment on the circumstances surrounding Parson’s arrest, told the Blade at a press conference in February on unrelated issues that he had worked closely with Parson in past years, saying Parson “served the citizens of the District of Columbia well.”

Virginia

LGBTQ students join protests over new Fairfax County school superintendent

Critics say incoming official lacks experience leading large, diverse district

Published

5 days ago

April 19, 2022

Lou Chibbaro Jr.

Some Fairfax students and advocacy groups object to the new superintendent.

The Fairfax County, Va., School Board voted 9 to 3 on April 14 to approve the appointment of a new school superintendent for the county school system after more than 200 students, including members of an LGBTQ student group, held demonstrations against the appointment at several high schools earlier in the day.

After a months-long search process, the School Board selected Michelle Reid, the current superintendent of the Northshore School District in Bothell, Wash., a small city located within the Seattle metropolitan area, to replace current Fairfax School Superintendent Scott Brabrand, who is stepping down effective June 30.

The student protesters have joined other community and advocacy groups, including the Fairfax chapter of the NAACP, in expressing concern that Reid’s experience in leading a relatively small school district with about 22,000 students is insufficient to head the Fairfax school system, which enrolls about 180,000 students who come from more diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

School officials and members of the School Board who voted for Reid’s appointment said they were impressed with the knowledge, understanding, and staunch support Reid expressed for policies embracing and supporting a racially diverse school system such as Fairfax County Public Schools.

Reid, a former school principal who holds a doctorate degree in educational leadership, expressed strong support for the needs of LGBTQ and other minority students during her interview process, according to gay Fairfax School Board member Karl Frisch, who voted in favor of Reid’s appointment.

“Throughout all of our interviews with her, Dr. Reid routinely spoke – unprompted – of the ways she addressed the equity needs of her study body – LGBTQIA students, Muslim students, students of color, English language learners, students with special needs, and more,” Frisch said during the April 14 School Board meeting.

“Her commitment to equity and inclusion was a thread woven through her answers, her accomplishments as a superintendent, and her commitments to this Board,” Frisch said.

Information on the Northshore School District website shows that the district adopted a strongly worded nondiscrimination policy protecting transgender and gender nonconforming students in 2017 during Reid’s tenure as superintendent. Fairfax County Public Schools adopted a similar policy on gender identity nondiscrimination in 2021.

The school system in previous years adopted polices banning discrimination against students, teachers, and other employees based on sexual orientation, which Reid strongly upheld, according to her supporters.

Although the Northshore School District adopted a strongly worded policy banning bullying and harassment of all students, including LGBTQ students, in 2011, new guidelines for updating and enforcing the anti-bullying policies were updated in 2020 under Reid, who began her tenure as Northshore superintendent in 2016.

Aaryan Rawal, a spokesperson for Pride Liberation Project, the LGBTQ student group that helped organize the student protests over the Reid appointment, told the Washington Blade one day before the protests that the Pride group was not aware of any actions taken by Reid against the LGBTQ students, but the group was unaware at that time of any actions she may have taken in support of LGBTQ equality.

Rawal pointed to a letter signed by 375 students sent last week to School Board members and a consulting firm that Fairfax school officials retained to organize a search for the new superintendent explaining the students’ objections to the approval of Reid as superintendent.

“Unfortunately, the voices of the student body were not heard during this search process,” the letter says. It says that while school officials held a 15-day community outreach period that included an 11-member student “stakeholder group,” the group was not representative of the full student body.

In a separate statement, the NAACP said it favored the hiring of another finalist candidate for the Fairfax school superintendent’s job, a Black woman educator and Omaha, Neb., Public Schools Superintendent Cheryl Logan, who withdrew from contention for the job on April 9 without giving a reason, according to reports by the Washington Post.

“The issue we all agree on is that Fairfax County Public Schools needs a superintendent who has commensurate experience in leading organizations of this size, diversity, complexity, and that the Superintendent of Northshore School District isn’t the right fit,” a joint statement released by the NAACP and other groups opposing Reid’s appointment, including Pride Liberation Project, says.

School Board members who supported Reid said she stood out from the pool of 72 applicants, among other things, because of her approach to equity and inclusion, according to FFX Now, the online Fairfax local news site. “Among this large, strong group, Dr. Reid was consistently at the top,” FFX Now quoted School Board Vice Chair Rachna Sizemore-Heizer as saying.

“We asked all of our applicants about how they would heal a divided community,” Frisch told fellow board members. “It says a lot about her character that she told us she would listen and that she would not presume to speak for others whose lived experience is different from her own,” Frisch said.

Delaware

Blade’s 15th annual Rehoboth Summer Kickoff Party set for May 20

Rep. Blunt Rochester to keynote popular fundraising event

Published

6 days ago

April 18, 2022

Staff reports

Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester is scheduled to speak at the Blade’s 15th annual Summer Kickoff Party on May 20. (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

After two years of COVID-related postponements, the Blade announced last week the return of its popular Summer Kickoff Party in Rehoboth Beach, Del.

The 15th annual event was moved to September due to pandemic restrictions the past two years but this year marks its return to May.

The Rehoboth Summer Kickoff Party will be held Friday, May 20 at The Pines with a special appearance by U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.). More speakers expected to be announced soon.

Tickets are $20 and include drink tickets and light appetizers. A portion is a tax-deductible donation to the Blade Foundation, 501(c)(3). Visit the Blade’s Facebook page to purchase tickets.

Money raised supports the Steve Elkins Memorial Fellowship, named in honor of Steve Elkins, a journalist and co-founder of the CAMP Rehoboth LGBT community center. Elkins served as editor of Letters from CAMP Rehoboth for many years as well as executive director of the center before his death in March of 2018.

The fellow covers issues of interest to the LGBTQ community of Delaware for 12 weeks during the summer months. Stories include coverage of legislative and political issues out of Dover; LGBTQ business issues in Wilmington; the summer beach season in Rehoboth and more. Stories are published in the Washington Blade. This year’s Blade-Elkins fellow is Jack Walker, a a junior at Brown University and senior editor of multimedia at The Brown Daily Herald. He begins his fellowship in early May.

If you are unable to attend you can make a donation to the Blade Foundation at BladeFoundation.org

Sponsors of this year’s event include Delmarva Power and the The Pines.