A federal lawsuit alleges a former female Greater Naples Fire Rescue District officer was subjected to years of “repeated sexual harassment” and that the district and its fire chief refused to investigate her complaints and instead retaliated against her and eventually fired her. Schultz’s attorney, Benjamin Yormak, said the “nature of the language” and “the severity and regularity” of harassment sets this case apart from others. He said he expects damages to be in the “hundreds of thousands” of dollars.
“This is pattern and practice that has been going on for a long time,” he said.
Yormak said although the fire service is certainly “no stranger to a locker room mentality,” there was “a line crossed” in Schultz’s case. Nobody, male or female, should be subjected to that kind of conduct, Yormak said.
“Nothing was done for years,” he said. “That, to me, is the most striking about this case.”