Bringing new meaning
to the phrase “cop a feel,” a former Paso Robles police officer filed a lawsuit
against the city Tuesday, alleging former Police Chief Lisa Solomon-Chitty made
repeated sexual advances toward him, and terminated him when she was rebuffed.
In the action lodged
by Brennan Lux, Solomon-Chitty and Paso Robles city staff and officials are
additionally accused of creating a hostile work environment and ignoring
allegations of retaliation.
Following a two-year
investigation, CalCoastNews reported January 12 on Solomon-Chitty’s alleged
sexual conduct with, and in the presence of, department subordinates, including
Lux and numerous others. Previously, CalCoastNews published reports of Solomon-Chitty’s
public behavior in local saloons, where she sometimes danced on
bars, and described herself as “an entertainer.”
Since January,
additional officers and police department employees have been interviewed by
CalCoastNews regarding Solomon-Chitty’s reported behavior. These individuals
have alleged their former boss threatened them with trumped-up criminal charges
if they rebuffed her advances or questioned her management practices. She has
become the subject of intense public scrutiny. But she has yet to publicly
comment on, or deny, the mounting allegations.
And this week,
several sources interviewed regarding these allegations have told CalCoastNews
they are being physically threatened by police officers close to Solomon-Chitty
— and at least one of those threatened plans to leave town.
Following numerous
allegations of sexual misconduct and poor management practices, Solomon-Chitty
and Paso Robles officials reached a confidential
agreement March 20 calling for payment of severance and back pay of
more than $250,000. The agreement cited adverse “online reports” as having
caused “irreparable harm” to her reputation and adversely affecting her ability
to perform her job duties.
City Manager Jim App
and members of the city council praised Solomon-Chitty following council’s
approval of her parting package. App called her “a great asset” to the city and
“a dedicated public servant,” adding that he was personally distressed by
Solomon-Chitty’s departure.
In his lawsuit, Lux
notes that he was hired as an officer in 2000 by then-Lt. Solomon-Chitty. Then,
at a 2006 after-party for a charity event, Solomon-Chitty reportedly made her
first move on Lux by caressing his leg and asking him for a ride home.
Lux refused,
suggesting they should remain just friends, according to the lawsuit.
A short time later,
after being named chief in early 2007, Solomon-Chitty called Lux and asked if
she could stop by his home to talk. While there, she allegedly initiated oral
sex on her subordinate after sharing a few beers.
Following the
encounter, Lux claims he began limiting his contact with the chief.
According to the
lawsuit, Solomon-Chitty became angry, and accused Lux of being distant. Lux
responded by telling his boss that “he believed that a professional
relationship between the two of them was best for both of them,” the lawsuit
says.
In 2008,
Solomon-Chitty required all members of her command staff to attend a
team-building workshop at the Carmel Valley Lodge during Super Bowl weekend.
After the first day
of workshop events, Solomon-Chitty ordered the seven attending officers to join
her in the hot tub. Solomon-Chitty, who was becoming increasingly intoxicated,
according to the lawsuit, stood and flashed her breasts.
She then allegedly
sat down next to Lux, slid her hand into his shorts and grabbed his penis. Lux
objected, quickly got out of the hot tub, and jumped into the unheated pool.
However, because of
the temperature of the pool on that cold and rainy day, Lux needed to warm up
and stepped back in the hot tub.
According to the
lawsuit, Solomon-Chitty then repeated her groping, while Lux continued to
object to the allegedly unwanted sexual contact. Lux then left the hot tub.
The following day,
Solomon-Chitty reportedly warned Lux that information about the sexual assault
was not to be repeated.
Up until that time,
Lux had received exemplary performance reviews. But after he rebuffed her
advances in the hot tub, Solomon-Chitty began retaliating against him by
directing department supervisors to scrutinize Lux’s activities, according to
the lawsuit.
In Nov. 2011,
Solomon-Chitty terminated Lux for allegedly committing battery, use of
excessive force and unlawful detention during the arrest of a combative
suspect.
Officer Dave
Hernandez, the watch commander at the time, said he saw the video of the arrest
and contends that Solomon-Chitty trumped up the charges in a failed attempt to
have the officer charged with a crime. And while Solomon-Chitty sent reports of
the alleged assault to the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s office,
no charges were ever filed.
Additional
allegations include those made by Officer T.J. McCall, who told a city
investigator that Solomon-Chitty grabbed his penis while he sat in her car.
Hernandez also says
Solomon-Chitty touched him inappropriately. In 2007, Hernandez and another
officer in full uniform entered a saloon then called the Crooked Kilt, to do a
bar check.
Solomon, who had been
out on the dance floor, approached Hernandez in a room full of people and
allegedly pushed the officer’s face into her breasts.
After Hernandez
complained to the Paso Robles City Council about Solomon-Chitty’s management
practices, she allegedly attempted to have him charged with negligent operation
of a vehicle, and of being discourteous to a member of the public. Hernandez
resigned Jan. 11 and is contemplating filing a civil lawsuit suit against the
city.
In his lawsuit, Lux
seeks a judgment against the city of Paso Robles and up to 50 currently unnamed
defendants for unspecified monetary general damages, economic damages,
prejudgment interest and attorney’s fees.
As a result of the
unlawful acts of the defendants, the lawsuit alleges that Lux “suffered and
will suffer physical, mental, and emotional injuries, pain, distress,
suffering, anguish, fright, nervousness, grief, anxiety, worry, shame,
mortification, injured feelings, shock, humiliation, indignity, damage to
reputation, aggravation, inconvenience, and other non-economic damages in a sum
to be ascertained according to proof.”
A current officer,
Jon Tatro, has also filed a lawsuit against Solomon-Chitty and city officials,
claiming the former chief initiated an illegal ticket quota scheme and punished
officers who didn’t make their quotas.
And more recently,
CalCoastNews reported that Solomon-Chitty has for years been tweaking crime
statistic data supplied to state and federal justice departments, which were
used to facilitate grant applications.