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lesbian officer at the Portland
Police Bureau says she was sub
jected to a sexually hostile work
environment as the only female
member of the elite Special
Emergency Response Team, the Portland Tribune
reported Oct. 2.
Liana Reyna, 32, filed a legal notice with the
city March 22 indicating she might file a lawsuit
within two years. The next day, Chief Mark
Kroeker temporarily deactivated the team, a 29-
member unit that responds to hostage and other
crisis situations.
Reyna filed the same complaint May 8 with
the state Bureau of Labor and Industries. She
claims the discrimination stemmed from her
gender as well as her sexual orientation.
The allegations outline a series of initiation
rituals and hazing activities that former Chief
Penny Harrington called “vile,” “disgusting" and
“demeaning." According to documents filed with
the city and federal governments and obtained by
the Tribune, Reyna claims she was forced to:
• Take home a “birthday idol” consisting of
two men performing oral sex.
• Wear “rodent gear”— a plastic army hel
met, a seashell necklace and a wooden boot— in
restaurants and before and after training.
• Perform menial tasks such as making cof
fee, setting up firing range targets and cleaning
the range.
• Sing a cheer with lewd sexual terms adapt
ed for her as a woman.
• Participate in skits in which male members
danced in G-strings and coconut bras.
• Attend skits in which two members wore
only thong bikinis and their gun belts and rook
ies performed a striptease.
In May 2000, Reyna claims, a sergeant told
r
SERT as a good old boys club fueled by testos
terone and stupidity. “It’s upset me for a long
time. It’s why females haven’t been all gung-ho
about joining that unit. They’re only hurting
Lesbian officer accuses Portland Police Bureau of sex discrimination
themselves.”
T he officer understands the desire to pro
by Jim R ad o sta
mote camaraderie and teamwork. However,
the source added that chauvinistic and
sophomoric behavior is not the way to form a
^ Tribune, the investigation involves inter-
3 views with more than 80 individuals.
cohesive unit.
“We want to make sure that if there’s
“Use judgment,” the officer said. “How does
a lessons to learn, if there’s ways to improve
that make a female feel like she’s fitting in?”
Asked about why the investigation is taking
g on this, the entire management has the
a benefit of learning those lessons,” said Sgt.
so long, the insider said a lot of people need to
Brian Schmautz, a spokesman participating
write reports, review documents and come to a
in the probe. “The mere fact that the chief consensus. “This is a high-profile thing....
There’s no way to do it properly and have
took six sergeants and a lieutenant
from the police bureau and v
it be quick.
The officer does not be-
removed them from their
"This really
assignments and placed
i
U »
-
lieve SERT mistreated Reyna
them on this investiga
shouldn t go on anymore. because of her sexual orien-
tation.
tion exclusively...is an
It
is
demeaning
to
women,
tation
The bureau
has
been under
heightened
indication that the
bureau took the con
whether there is a woman scrutiny since last year,
when old anti-gay com
cerns seriously.”
there or not. It's just
ments made by Kroeker
Tribune columnist
were
unearthed by the
Phil
Stanford
quoted
Mark Kroeker
inappropriate
to
do
Portland Alliance.
a high-ranking officer
The officer hopes the
her that teammates see her “like they do their who suggested the inquiry
that kind o f stuff."
investigation results in a
has been dragged out because
wives.” Another officer allegedly said, “Because
change in SER T ’s initiation
you are a woman, you should be working harder several members of Kroeker’s
process. “This really shouldn’t go
command staff are former SERT
than anyone.”
on anymore. It is demeaning to
members. “If this were just about a
Reyna ended up resigning from SERT last
women, whether there is a woman there or not.
bunch of low-ranking cops and sergeants, you
November because she said members started
It’s just inappropriate to do that kind of stuff.”
spreading rumors that she had a seizure disorder. can bet it would have been over and done with
in 90 days, and those guys would be down the
The officer mentioned U .S. criticism of
She since has been reassigned to the North
Afghanistan and other Third World countries
road,” the source said.
Precinct.
that mistreat women. “Are we treating our
A Portland Police Bureau officer, who spoke
SERT was reinstated May 11, but the inquiry
women any better ?” J H
still has not been completed. According to the to Just Out on condition of anonymity, described
G ood C op , B ad C op
— Portland Police
Bureau officer
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