Former officer settles toxic workplace suit
A former Lehigh Township police officer has settled a federal civil suit that accused the department’s chief of harassing and belittling her until she was compelled to quit.
Jessica Edwards filed the suit against Chief Scott Fogel and the township in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania last June, less than a month after she resigned.
Edwards claimed Fogel sexually harassed and physically accosted her during her five years with the department. She was seeking compensatory and punitive damages for severe mental distress she says affected her physical health.
The suit was dismissed Feb. 23 because it was settled, according to online court records that did not disclose details of the settlement.
Scranton attorney Patrick J. Boland III, who represented the township, declined to comment Wednesday. Edwards’ attorney, Ryan Corkery, did not respond to a message.
Edwards claimed she had a good relationship with Fogel after her 2018 hiring, saying he took her under his wing, but after about a year his attitude changed and he began to display an “inappropriate, unprofessional and intense interest in [Edwards’] personal life.”
The complaint says Fogel monitored Edwards’ social media activity and that he berated her for having a romantic relationship with another officer in the department, though there was no policy forbidding it. He allegedly suggested in front of other officers and township employees that Edwards was promiscuous and had a venereal disease.
On two occasions, Edwards says, Fogel grabbed her by the hair and forcefully pulled her toward him. The second incident happened in December 2020 and was witnessed by a police sergeant who filed a report with the township but no action was taken against Fogel, Edwards said.
In addition to the alleged harassment, Fogel denied Edwards opportunities for professional advancement that were granted to other officers, the suit claimed.