SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Three female Salt Lake City police officers plan to sue the city over their claim that they were sexually harassed by a deputy chief, their attorney said.
Officer Tiffany Commagere, Sgt. Robin Heiden and former Lt. Melody Gray intend to file a civil rights lawsuit against the city, Police Chief Chris Burbank and former Deputy Chief Rick Findlay now that a deadline for the city to respond to their notice of claim has expired, lawyer Ed Brass said.
The three women say they were reluctant to report their allegations of sexual harassment against Findlay because he occupied a position of authority over them and oversaw the division that would investigate their claims.
They note an outside agency investigates even minor traffic accidents involving police officers, and sexual harassment claims also should be investigated by an outside agency.
“The big thing for us is the inequity that existed, and that’s what we’re trying to correct,” Gray told The Salt Lake Tribune.
“We don’t want someone to feel like they can’t protect themselves,” Heiden told the Deseret News.
Findlay is accused of sharing an image of Heiden and Gray in bikinis and a photo of a nude woman he claimed was Commagere, who denies such a photo existed. He was placed on paid leave in November 2013 amid an internal investigation into the allegations and resigned in June 2014.
Findlay has an unlisted phone number and could not be reached for comment. The city and Burbank declined comment, saying policy prevents them from responding to pending litigation.
Burbank last year wrote that Findlay’s conduct called into question not only his personal professionalism but that of the entire police department. But the chief ruled the conduct didn’t warrant his termination and cited Findlay’s significant contributions since joining the department in 1994.
According to their notice of claim, the sexual harassment claim by the three women was upheld by the city Department of Human Resources.
Gray, in the notice, said Findlay took her phone without her permission and transferred photos on it to himself. She said one of the pictures was of her and Heiden in bikinis, and Findlay showed the photos to many people during the next two years.
Commagere accused Findlay of showing co-workers a picture of a nude woman that he claimed was her. There was no proof that the woman in the picture was her, and Commagere said she would never give Findlay such a photo.
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