Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
On the third day of testimony before a federal jury, a settlement has been announced in the Sacramento Metro sex scandal coverup case.
The suit was brought by Fire Captain Mark Thomsen, a 19 year veteran who claims he was terminated in 2007 in retaliation for refusing to cooperate with the coverup of a sex scandal. Thomsen’s suit alleges that a former female employee was “raped, sodomized and sexually assaulted while on duty over a span of several months” and involved as many as fifteen Sac Metro Fire employees.
Thomsen, who was assigned as an internal affairs investigator, claims he was given a “direct order” by the Fire Chief to “keep your mouth shut”, and admonished that the case had the potential to “bankrupt the district”. Thomsen felt that the matter should have been handed over to the police for investigation and prosecution. The woman’s claims were settled in 2006 by paying her $550,000.
U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller gave the parties seven days to finalize the terms of the settlement, which have not been released. The Sacramento Bee is reporting that a spokesperson for Metro Fire, Michelle Eidam, said Thomsen will not receive any monetary compensation as part of the settlement.
