NOW Members Assail Newport Officials : Criticism: Women’s group calls lawyer’s report on sexual harassment in Police Department ‘irresponsible’ and asks that the city make ‘proactive changes.’

Members of the local chapter of the National Organization for Women assailed city officials Monday for not taking quicker and more sweeping action in response to a city investigator’s report on sexual harassment in the Police Department.

In a letter to the City Council, NOW members, who originally accused the city of slanting its internal investigation into the charges by hiring an attorney who had defended people accused of discrimination in the past, called the lawyer’s brief report “irresponsible.” They urged the council to “move swiftly to overhaul” the beleaguered department.

Since the independent probe, which concluded last month that “a trier of fact might find that conduct of a sexually harassing nature occurred,” the city has fired Police Chief Arb Campbell and moved to fire Capt. Anthony J. Villa Jr. Both are accused of rape and sexual harassment in a lawsuit by 10 current and former female employees.

“Since they’ve done the initial firing, they really haven’t done any of the proactive changes to get the department back on the right track,” Bayview NOW spokeswoman Tamara Mason said. “We want them to finish the process. It’s just not fair.”

Mason and Kimberly Wilson, who chairs the group’s sexual harassment task force, presented the letter at Monday’s City Council meeting. In it, NOW members critiqued the city investigator’s report, contested the extension of Villa’s opportunity to respond to the city’s attempt to terminate his employment, and called for immediate reforms to clean up the Police Department.

“As the city has found justification to fire Arb Campbell and move to fire Anthony Villa, there must be enough evidence to move to rectify the situation for the women involved,” the letter says. “We urge you to do the right thing now.”

Mayor Clarence J. Turner, however, defended the city, saying the investigation was thorough. He said officials cannot take more forceful action with the lawsuit pending.

“We are not going to be stampeded into a rush to judgment,” Turner said.

NOW members focused much of their ire at Harold A. Bridges, the attorney who conducted the city’s investigation and presented a two-page report summarizing his initial findings at the last City Council meeting on Dec. 14.

In the report, Bridges told the council that he had found evidence to support the women’s claims about sexual harassment, but that “a trier of fact” might also find that the women themselves harassed co-workers.

“We find it appalling that in announcing the initial results of the city’s investigation into charges of sexual harassment and rape, Mr. Bridges chose to place blame on the alleged victims of these acts,” the letter says.

The letter demands that the city:

* Immediately reinstate fired Officer Rochelle Maier, one of the four women who filed the original lawsuit against Campbell, Villa and the city Sept. 24.

* Institute anti-sexual harassment training for all city employees.

* Change policies regarding temporary employees and employees on leave to encourage diligent reporting of harassment.

* Hire and promote more women in the Police and Fire departments.