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Woman Sues Louisiana State Police; Claims Discrimination |
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Woman sues Louisiana State Police; claims discrimination
Posted: Apr 22, 2010 8:01 PM CDT Updated: Apr 22, 2010 9:00 PM CDT
Camille Brewton
By David Spunt
BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - A Baton Rouge woman is suing Louisiana State Police after she said the agency fired her just days before retirement, because she is deaf. Louisiana State Police said that was not the case.
Camille Brewton has been deaf her entire life, and claims she was harassed at work. Brewton's attorney Jill Craft filed the lawsuit Thursday morning, arguing her client was not given the proper accommodations as spelled out in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
"I've suffered in silence for 10 years. I'm very depressed and I want to tell the world," Brewton saidsaid.
The main part of the lawsuit alleges Louisiana State Police failed to provide Brewton with an interpreter, although they say she used a video messaging device.
"I need interpreters for meetings with my lieutenant, captain, with my supervisors or anyone," she said.
Brewton said what makes her situation even worse is that she planned on retiring May 1st. Now that she has been fired, she claims she will not get her retirement match from the state.
Louisiana State Police sent Brewton a termination letter, spelling out why she was fired. They claim she was not following proper procedure in her department, and said she was sloppy with clerical work.
"She was counseled several times on her job expectations and her job responsibilities and was provided training and the tools to be successful. Numerous supervisors noticed deficiencies in her work," said spokesman Lt. Doug Cain.
"We didn't factor retirement into our decision. Our decision was solely based on job performance as the letter indicates," Cain said.
Brewton said she had enough vacation time to take her to her retirement. Cain could not speak on her time left or status of her retirement package. We checked on several other state agencies and all said they have interpreters available.
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