Sides will Discuss Settlement in Houston Fire Department Gender Discrimination Suit
May 05—City of Houston lawyers agreed to a judge's request on Monday to discuss a settlement in a federal gender discrimination suit filed by a Houston Fire Department captain who claimed she received harsher punishment than a male colleague after both forgot to file paperwork related to controlled substances.
If no deal is reached, the case goes to trial next month based on claims that the omission derailed Houston Fire Department Captain Rebecca Wilson's appointment as a paramedic, along with $550-a-month extra pay, while another EMS captain who made the same mistake was reinstated.
Wilson, who joined the fire department nearly 25 years ago in July 1990, made history as the first woman assigned to an HFD fire suppression unit, her lawsuit claims.
Her petition states that she was held up by the department as an exemplary and pioneering female firefighter during her time at the HFD Academy.
But in its trial brief filed last week, the city argued that Wilson had a far worse record of errors and violations than HFD Capt. Juan Riojas -- the other EMS supervisor who also forgot to sign documentation accounting for all controlled substances during a shift change on Oct. 21, 2010.
The 26-page filing also said that the city's EMS director, Dr. David Persse, has sole discretion to determine who works under his medical license. The document also stated that Wilson's pay decreased because of the firefighter union's collective bargaining agreement -- not a demotion.
Wilson, who filed the lawsuit last year, continues to oversee a pumper truck and its crew at Station 61 near Hobby Airport.
No offer made yet
"Is there any possibility that this matter could be settled?" U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt asked lawyers on both sides Monday.
Wilson's lawyer, Peter Costea, said he had not made an offer to the city. Wilson asked for a jury trial in January 2014 when the case was moved to federal court from Harris County district court.
Mayra Cuello, the city's lead lawyer on the case, said the first time a settlement was discussed with her boss, City Attorney Donna Edmundson, was last week and that the city did not have an offer.
Lawyers for both sides told the judge they would attempt to cut a deal.
The judge also explained why he would not grant the city's request to side in their favor, which would end the case.
"Those two people handled paperwork in a like or similar manner," Hoyt said. "After some reflection or pushback by Mr. Riojas, he is now relieved of discipline ... and plaintiff, Ms. Wilson was not. There may be some other reasons why the city would say, well, we didn't reinstate Ms. Wilson 'because' ... but those 'because issues' are disputed fact issues in the case."
If the case is not settled and goes to trial, Hoyt also said he wanted to clarify that the city was covering the conduct of Persse -- despite his independence to approve or revoke the credentials of those working under his license. The EMS director is not named as a defendant in the case.
"He is the City of Houston," city lawyer Suzanne Chauvin said.
Jury selection for an estimated three-day trial is set to begin June 15.
Costea, Wilson's lawyer, plans to call Persse as a witness.
Wilson, wearing a reddish-brown French braid, told the judge that she was satisfied with Monday's developments in the case.
Previous incidents
The gender bias claim follows an explosive period several years ago in which some Houston firefighters claimed they faced hostile work environments.
In the summer of 2009, two female firefighters at Station 54 -- Jane Draycott and Paula Keyes -- found racist and sexist graffiti scrawled on the walls of their dormitory. The incident occurred after Draycott had complained to HFD officials about harassment and as the department was reeling amid other racial discrimination accusations after two noose-like knots were found in firehouses.
The city's Office of Inspector General looked into the Draycott and Keyes allegations, but reached inconclusive findings because investigators said there was not enough evidence to pinpoint a culprit. A subsequent FBI review of the city's investigation also failed to turn up clues about a possible suspect.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission later determined that complaints by Draycott and subsequent retaliation subjected her to a hostile work environment based on her gender. The agency also confirmed Draycott's allegation that former Fire Chief Phil Boriskie and other members of the HFD command staff allowed and encouraged male firefighters to disparage and humiliate her upon her return to work in January 2010.
In July 2010, Draycott withdrew a lawsuit that claimed a pattern of gender discrimination at HFD dating back to 2000.
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