A disgruntled Nazareth cop doesn't have a leg to stand on in discrimination claim, borough says.
By Andrew McGill, OF THE MORNING CALL
10:52 PM EDT, September 16, 2010
Hearing a few disparaging remarks about women and "wetbacks" on the job isn't enough to net you a win in court, according to Nazareth borough.
In a response filed in court last week, the borough outlined its objections to police officer Vanessa Cruz-Smith's federal lawsuit, which contends she was fired from her job and nearly denied benefits because of her gender and Puerto Rican ancestry.
Still employed with the borough, Cruz-Smith says fellow officers conspired to keep her in the dark about court dates and disciplined her on trumped-up charges.
The borough's answer? Show us some facts to back that up.
"She doesn't have a valid claim," Nazareth solicitor Al Pierce said. "You come back to where to the answer takes you. There's not a valid claim."
Hired in 2005, Cruz-Smith says former Nazareth Police Chief Michael Sinclair told her not to "advertise" her ethnicity, as "wetbacks" were not common in the area. At another time, she says the chief told her women had no place in his department.
She says she was subjected to numerous slights and dubious disciplinary actions, culminating in her firing after missing a court hearing. She also says police supervisors tried to deny her disability benefits from an injury sustained while apprehending a suspect.
She was subsequently rehired after arbitration.
But the borough contends that the two isolated comments Cruz-Smith highlights are far from proof of a systemic pattern of racism. What's more, since Puerto Rico is in United State territory, borough lawyers say she can't sue based on national origin.
On top of that, "wetback" doesn't even refer to Puerto Ricans, the response explains: It's a slur against Mexicans.
Cruz-Smith's lawyer, Don Bailey, did not return calls for comment. Cruz-Smith could not be reached for comment.
In her suit, she called out Sinclair, current Chief Thomas Trachta and fellow officer Fred Lahovski as her principal tormentors. But the borough says her suit attributes racist and sexist comments only to Sinclair, giving no evidence no evidence against the other defendants.
Nazareth also claims Cruz-Smith never made a convincing case that racism was commonplace and accepted in town government, invalidating her case against the borough at large. As for a First Amendment claim — the officer says she was punished for seeking redress against the government — borough lawyers said she only filed her grievance after she was already fired.
Pierce said Cruz-Smith is still employed with the borough as she works through her disability claim.
andrew.mcgill@mcall.com
No comments:
Post a Comment