Cook County taxpayers on hook for $1.3 million after court reporter's harassment claim
CHICAGO (CBS) – Leering, snickering, making sexual gestures – a former court reporter who contacted CBS 2 said that's how some deputies treated her at a Cook County courthouse, repeatedly.
CBS 2's Lauren Victory explained why taxpayers are on the hook for how her complaints were handled.
At Cook County courthouse, District 2, you can get married, fight an eviction, and argue a traffic violation. You can also be sexually harassed here, according to two lawsuits filed by a former Illinois court reporter.
Court reporters transcribe proceedings in real time. They can't miss a word.
They're required to "produce a verbatim record at a high rate of speed," according to a Cook County job posting. Concentration is key.
But in Skokie, that focus was apparently hard to maintain.
The woman at the center of the lawsuits said two Cook County Sheriff's deputies "terrified and humiliated" her for years.
She said they commented about her "clothes, weight and appearance," and were "taking pictures of her without her consent." They were also "following her" and "grabbing her microphone" as though it were a male body part.
Another example: one deputy used to block her in the court hallways "stretching his arms out and physically trapping her" for "one to five times per week."
Her breaking point came on April 27, 2018. The court reporter said she ran from the courtroom crying after the two deputies "sandwiched" her and mimicked a sexual act.
The Cook County Sheriff's Office looked into her complaint, but an investigative summary CBS 2 obtained showed the witnesses the court reporter suggested "refused to be interviewed" and the deputies "denied making any sexual comments or sexual gestures."
In conclusion, "this case is closed and classified as not sustained."
The Sheriff's Office found no harassment. So why did the woman walk away with gobs of taxpayer money? Public records show she settled not one, but two cases related to her claims to the tune of $1.3 million.
No one from the chief judge's office, the office that manages court reporters, would explain the decision to settle and avoid trial.
But Hon. Gary Feinerman, the judge assigned to the case, gave us an idea what that office was up against.
His opinion was that a "reasonable jury" would conclude the woman's employer was "apathetic" to her sexual harassment complaint and "failed to investigate" or "follow its own policies."
The court reporter's supervisors suggested she transfer to a different Cook County courthouse but Feinerman concluded that was a way to "to avoid dealing with her complaint rather than to improve her working conditions."
That's not "appropriate corrective action," he wrote.
Also problematic, in his eyes, was that the woman was fired less than two months after she complained.
Fast forward six months, in one fell swoop, with other settlement items, the Cook County Board of Commissioners Finance Committee voted to recommend the whole board sign off on a big check for the court reporter.
A day later, that approval came.
The county awarded the court reporter about $768,000, plus another $500,000 for legal fees, on behalf of the Chief Judge's Office.
She also got a smaller settlement from the Sheriff's Office.
With more than $1 million paid out, what did taxpayers get for that? What changes are put in place to make sure this never happens again?
Those are questions CBS 2 asked, but have received little to no answers on.
CBS 2 also reached out to every Cook County commissioner who voted for the more than $1 million settlement for a comment on why they approved it. Only one got back to us: Bill Lowry, vice chair of the Cook County Litigation Committee
He said, in part, "I typically do not comment on settlements or litigation, but it goes without saying that we must have a zero tolerance for harassment in the workplace. We are committed to the provision of a safe and comfortable working environment for everyone. We must further ensure that our workplace is one in which all are treated with dignity and the utmost respect."