PASADENA : Embattled City Attorney to Take Early Retirement
Pasadena City Atty. Victor J. Kaleta, whose decade-long tenure had been upended by an investigation that concluded he had discriminated against women attorneys in his office, announced Wednesday that he would take early retirement after he lost the support of the majority of the City Council.
The council in a special session voted to accept his resignation. Kaleta, 56, will serve as an adviser to an interim city attorney until his retirement takes effect March 8, city officials said.
Kaleta said he resigned “in the interest of calming the waters,” adding that he has not “intentionally discriminated against anyone in my office.”
An investigator found that women attorneys in the city attorney office’s civil branch were discriminated against in promotion, salaries and benefits--particularly since a 1992 reorganization overseen by Kaleta.
The four women in that branch have since filed gender discrimination claims with state and federal agencies.
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