California: Nurse sues Oceanside PD for sex harassment
OCEANSIDE, Calif. (AP) — A nurse who was hired to draw blood from suspected drunken drivers and other criminals is suing the Oceanside Police Department for sexual harassment.
Kimberli Hirst claims that an officer made unwanted comments and advances when she worked as a forensic nurse there in 2008 and 2009. The lawsuit also claims the Police Department ignored her complaints.
The officer, 41-year-old Gilbert Garcia, was fired in late 2009 after an internal investigation. He tells the North County Times that Hirst is lying and his termination is unjust.
Oceanside City Attorney John Mullen says Hirst’s claim that the department ignored her complaints is false.
The suit, filed in September, names the officer, police force and city.
California: Boy Scouts sued after boy alleges sexual abuse
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) — A boy who says he was sexually abused by his troop leader in 2007 has filed a lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America in Santa Barbara.
The suit filed Wednesday by attorneys for the unnamed boy seeks unspecified damages and an injunction against the Boy Scouts for what it calls a policy of concealment of sexual abuse.
The suit stems from the case of Albert Stein, who in February 2009 pleaded no contest to two counts of molestation, one of them against the plaintiff. Stein is in prison and a registered sex offender.
The Boy Scouts said in a statement that in June they made youth protection training mandatory for all volunteers and that they include a sex abuse education pamphlet with every scout handbook.
Florida: Professor says she lost her job for not using text
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A former professor is suing the University of Central Florida, claiming her contract wasn’t renewed because she refused to use a textbook that she believes contains racially offensive stereotypes.
Nancy Rudner Lugo, a former nursing professor, filed the lawsuit in federal court in Orlando earlier this month.
In the lawsuit, Rudner Lugo says she believes she was let go after she complained, and later refused, to use the book which teaches students how to be sensitive to different ethnic groups.
UCF spokesman Grant Heston says he can’t comment on the specifics of pending litigation.
