Harassment Watch : Mutual Respect

Citizens concerned about wasteful government spending should be sure their public agencies are up to date on what constitutes sexual harassment, why it is wrong and how much it costs.

In Newport Beach, the Police Department was alleged to be a hotbed of harassment. A number of female employees sued the police chief and a captain two years ago. Both men denied any wrongdoing and have since left the department. But an investigator for the city concluded that a trial probably would find there was an atmosphere of sexual harassment in the department.

This week the city, without admitting wrongdoing, settled the remaining charges out of court, paying $1.2 million to seven women. That boosts the city’s cost for the lawsuits to $3.3 million, including attorneys’ fees.

There are welcome signs that Newport Beach has learned its lesson. It has instituted three-hour classes on sexual harassment for all city employees. The women’s attorney said the department work environment had improved dramatically. Unfortunately the out-of-court agreement dictated that the women involved would not work for the department again. Some have moved out of state to start new lives.

In recent years, several Los Angeles and Orange County communities have shelled out taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars because of charges of sexual harassment within law enforcement agencies. Those who have not gotten the message that those shenanigans belong in the past should get new jobs--if anyone else will hire them.