Thurston County Sheriff’s Office civilian employee fired for sexual harassment
An employee of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office was fired Thursday, Aug. 31, after an internal investigation uncovered years of sexual harassment toward more than one of his coworkers.
The Sheriff’s Office sent out a news release announcing Sheriff Derek Sanders’ decision to terminate the employee. According to the release, the department first received an internal complaint about the civilian employee’s behavior Aug. 4, and an investigation was launched immediately. As soon as the employee was placed under investigation, he notified the department of his intent to retire Sept. 1.
The investigation continued and uncovered four years of sexual harassment from the same employee toward two separate female employees. He was terminated the day before he planned to retire.
According to the news release, the Sheriff’s Office is reviewing all elements of the sexual harassment policy in the department to make reporting incidents easier. The review includes training and prevention, and focuses on victim-centered reporting methods.
The sexual harassment case involving the terminated employee was reported to a local police agency for an independent criminal investigation.
This story was originally published September 1, 2023 at 8:12 AM.
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