PITTSBURGH – Sex discrimination litigation against Frazer Township from a female, former member of the township’s police department who claimed she was treated poorly and terminated on the basis of her gender, has recently been settled.
Amber Price first filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pittsburgh on May 5 versus Frazer Township, Pennsylvania.
“Officer Price is an experienced law enforcement officer, having served municipalities in Pennsylvania as a full-time and part-time police officer beginning in 2001, after graduating from the police academy in 2000. Officer Price was hired by Frazer Township as a Patrol Officer on Feb. 1, 2016, and terminated by Chief Kuhns on May 23, 2018; Officer Price filed a claim for unemployment compensation (UC) benefits where Chief Kuhns and she testified under oath at a UC hearing about the circumstances surrounding her termination. Officer Price was hired as a ‘part-time’ police officer, but she routinely worked for Frazer in excess of 32 hours per week, and sometimes worked for over 40 hours per week,” the suit said.
“The Frazer police department was and is overwhelmingly male; with the exception of Officer Price, none of the female police officers Frazer hired have remained employed by Frazer for more than one year. Officer Price is the only female police officer Frazer ever hired who had over 10 years’ experience. Frazer employs both full-time and part-time police officers; only full-time police officers receive health insurance and related benefits. Frazer has never employed a female, full-time police officer. At no time during her employment with Frazer before she was terminated, was Officer Price ever disciplined by Frazer, or Chief Kuhns either for her performance or for her conduct. As of May 2018, Officer Price was the most senior female police officer employed by the Frazer Police Department.”
The suit added that in December 2017, the only full-time police officer other than the Chief resigned and in the ensuing months, the part-time male Patrol Officers often talked and argued about which one of them would or should be made the next full-time police officer, based on who deserved it more (when it was usually based on seniority).
Furthermore, Frazer Township Police Department Officer Dalton VanWhy, who was immediately after Officer Price in seniority, repeatedly told Officer Price that Frazer would never hire “a girl” as a full-time police officer.
“On April 5, 2018, the Pennsylvania State Police suspended Officer VanWhy from Justice Network (JNET) Systems, including Commonwealth Law Enforcement Network (CLEAN) access and Allegheny County 911 access (ACES), for misuse and the same day he was suspended from working at neighboring Springdale Borough since he was incapable of performing his duties as a police officer, he was also prohibited from calling into Allegheny County 911 and denied all computer access to any confidential information which permits police officers to complete an arrest or write a citation,” the suit stated.
“This was the initial suspension pending a further investigation by PSP; the investigation concluded Officer VanWhy had engaged in repeated misuse, and he was suspended from CLEAN for a total of six months. In violation of JNET Misuse policy, Chief Kuhns ordered the other Frazer Township police officers, including Officer Price, to provide Officer VanWhy with CJI data from these systems during his suspension. During Officer VanWhy’s suspension from JNET, he filed more than 40 criminal cases and traffic citations as the arresting officer, including on April 18, 2018, at a time when he was not entitled to access the criminal history or personal information of the individuals he arrested or issued traffic citations to.”
Officer Price, as the JNET Terminal Agency Coordinator Officer, was charged with enforcing JNET policy, and told Chief Kuhns she would not participate in violating JNET rules by providing Officer VanWhy with CJI which he was not authorized to access or use. As a result of Officer Price’s refusal to engage in misuse of JNET, Chief Kuhns could not assign Officer Price to work on the same shifts with Officer Van Why.
“On May 18, 2018, Officer VanWhy resigned from Springdale Borough under threat of termination due to his misuse of JNET/CLEAN. As of May 22, 2018, other than Officer Aaron Scott, Officer Price was Frazer’s then-longest-serving police officer, and there were no officers above the rank of Patrol Officer other than Chief Kuhns. It was known to Chief Kuhns and the other Frazer police officers that Officer Scott was resigning, and his last day was to be May 24, 2018. On May 22, 2018, Officer Price arrived at the Frazer Police Department at 2:50 p.m. for her 3:00 shift. On May 22, 2018, part-time Officer Matthew Miller worked the same 3-11 p.m. shift with Officer Price. Officer Price left the police station before Officer Miller and initially each officer drove a separate vehicle,” the suit says.
“On May 22, 2018, before Officer Price left the police station for her 3:00 shift, Chief Kuhns told her that Victoria’s Secret had been calling mall security and not calling 911 to report retail thefts. Officer Price told him she would call the Regional Manager to clarify the store’s policy and see why they were not calling 911. Chief Kuhns said OK. Officer Price put on her belt and vest and left the station. Because the Frazer police station is located in the Pittsburgh Mills Mall, many of the mall store managers called Frazer police officers, including Chief Kuhns, directly on their private cell phones if they knew which officer was working, rather than calling Allegheny County 911 for the report to be dispatched back to Frazer by radio, which saves about 5 minutes of response time. Officer Price had arranged to meet the Walmart Asset Protection Manager, Kathy, between 3:00-3:15 p.m. that day to collect video evidence of some recent thefts, and so Officer Price went straight to Walmart from the station. Officer Price had already left the Frazer police station no later than 3:07 p.m., at which time her telephone records prove she called her husband. Around 3:16 p.m. while Officer Price was inside the loss prevention office with the A.P. Manager Kathy reviewing video, there was another retail theft in progress at Walmart, which Officer Price immediately investigated and gathered all pertinent information related to that theft. Officer Price then proceeded to secure the video evidence for the prior theft investigations, as originally planned.”
Officer Price further alleged that she and Officer Miller investigated subsequently-reported thefts to Walmart and JCPenney in May 2018 and that during this process, Chief Kuhns “sent several late-night text messages to the Walmart A.P Manager Kathy’s personal phone on May 22, 2018, beginning at 10:56 p.m., admonishing her not to choose which officer to report cases to.”
Price continued that it was “common knowledge on the Frazer Township police force, on the Frazer Board of Supervisors, in Frazer Township and among the police forces in the Allegheny Valley, that Chief Kuhns often failed to work his scheduled shifts without notice, arrived to work his shifts intoxicated, drank alcohol during his shifts and appeared to suffer from active alcoholism.”
“On May 23, 2018, Officer Price arrived for her 3 p.m. shift at 2:50. Several off-duty Frazer Township police officers were standing outside the police station, and they laughed at her as she entered. Chief Kuhns called her into his office and closed the door. He was not in uniform, disheveled, agitated and smelled of alcohol. Chief Kuhns asked Officer Price, ‘Why were you not at JCPenney’s yesterday at 5?’ Officer Price asked, ‘Why would I be at JCPenney’s at 5?’ He replied, ‘Why were you not at JCPenney’s when I gave you a direct order to be there at 5?” Chief Kuhns started to raise his voice and slam his hand on the table and said, ‘Where were you? Don’t lie to me because I checked the GPS and I know where you were at.’ Office Price said, “I was at the station, and then I went to Walmart for a retail theft.’ Kuhns became very irate and started yelling that Officer Price had disregarded a direct order to go to JCPenney’s at 5 p.m. Officer Price told him that she had no idea what he was talking about. Chief Kuhns then raised his voice further and started yelling very loudly that Officer Price was lying. Officer Price continued to attempt to tell him several times that she had no knowledge of such a direct order, and asked him when he had given it. Chief Kuhns replied, “I told you both to be there yesterday,” the suit said.
“Officer Price repeated she had gone to a call for a retail theft at Walmart. Chief Kuhns began to argue there had been no theft at Walmart because, he said, Kathy had not called 911. Officer Price replied that Kathy had notified her on her personal cell phone, and attempted to explain that she had started to enter the report in the police reporting system yesterday and that she was going to finish the report that day. Chief Kuhns would not let Officer Price explain, but just kept yelling at her, ‘I know you ignored a direct order, and you are fired.’ He said she didn’t follow his orders and he was sick of her doing what she wanted. He said he had made up his mind, and, ‘You are terminated because you disobeyed a direct order.’ Officer Price just sat there still trying to explain that there was no direct order and Chief Kuhns yelled, ‘I am done, get the fuck of my police station.’ Officer Price continued to sit there, and she began crying. Chief Kuhns told her she could clean out her lockers that day or she could make arrangements to get her property later. Officer Price told him she would collect her property at that time.”
Male officers, who were not scheduled to work that day, appeared and made derogatory, mocking comments and took photographs of Officer Price upon her firing, the suit added.
In addition, the suit further detailed alleged acts of malfeasance from some of those same male officers, including failing to enter complete reports, sexting female employees at the local Walmart and engaging in sexual relations with confidential informants – male officers, who the suit alleged, were either not disciplined or sometimes even promoted, in spite of that alleged behavior.
The defendant filed an answer to the complaint on July 14, denying its substantive allegations and providing 12 separate affirmative defenses on its own behalf.
“Plaintiff was terminated from Frazer Township for insubordination (i.e. refusal to follow a direct order from the Chief) and for her untruthful, insubordinate and disrespectful response to the Chief’s counseling post investigation. Contrary to her averments, plaintiff’s gender had no bearing on her termination from Frazer Township. As a police officer and employee with Frazer Township, plaintiff agreed to its policies and procedures including (1) to be truthful in her conduct toward all persons; (2) to assume responsibility for her acts or omission to act; (3) not to indulge in profanity of speech or action during the performance of her official duties; (4) to be respectful when addressing an officer with a superior rank, and; (5) to promptly obey orders received from a superior officer. As a part-time police officer and employee with Frazer Township, plaintiff agreed to its policies and procedures, which included Frazer Township’s right to terminate her at-will employment, with or without cause, at any time,” those defenses stated.
“As a police officer and employee with Frazer Township, plaintiff agreed to its policies and procedures that included employee conduct and work rules, which identified unacceptable behaviors including unsatisfactory performance or conduct. Plaintiff agreed and understood that violation of those rules could result in disciplinary action including termination of employment. Plaintiff’s own conduct (failure to follow a direct order and untruthful, disrespectful, unprofessional, and insubordinate actions when questioned about said failure to follow direct order) caused any alleged damages. Plaintiff’s complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Frazer Township acted at all times lawfully, reasonably, prudently and in the exercise of good faith. Plaintiff’s claims are barred, in whole or in part, because plaintiff failed to mitigate her damages, if any. Plaintiff’s claims are barred to the extent that there is no causal connection between the events alleged in plaintiff’s complaint and the damages which she has allegedly sustained. Frazer Township reserves the right to supplement these affirmative defenses. Plaintiff’s claims may be barred by the applicable statute of limitations.”
UPDATE
On Nov. 14, plaintiff counsel filed a joint stipulation consent motion to dismiss the case, as a result of a settlement in the action. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
“The parties, through their undersigned counsel, hereby jointly stipulate to the dismissal of the instant action with prejudice pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a), each party to bear its own costs,” the stipulation stated.
The plaintiff was represented by Christian Bagin of Weinand & Bagin, in Pittsburgh.
The defendant was represented by Estelle K. McGrath and Carl Andrew Fejko of Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin, also in Pittsburgh.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania case 2:23-cv-00752
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com