Bogaski v. County of Allegheny

Defense Verdict

Date of Verdict: Nov. 20.

Court and Case No.: U.S. District Court, W.D., Pa. No. 2:15-cv-00487-LPL

Judge: Lisa Pupo Lenihan.

Type of Action: Discrimination.

Injuries: Mental/psychological-emotional distress

Plaintiffs Counsel: Devin C. O'Leary, Stockey & Kelly, Pittsburgh; Lyle J. Dresbold, Shrager Defense Attorneys, Pittsburgh.

Defense Counsel: Jake S. Lifson, Allegheny County Law Department, Pittsburgh. Virginia Spencer Scott, Allegheny County Law Department, Pittsburgh.

Comment:

In 2013, plaintiff Justina Bogaski began working as a laborer for the North Park facility of Allegheny County's Public Works Department, in Pittsburgh.

Bogaski asserted that, in March, she began experiencing harassment by foreman Tom Long and by others. According to Bogaski, who was the only female staffer in the department, Long slapped her buttocks, and she was subjected to sexually inappropriate and offensive comments by other male staffers. When she complained, she was allegedly met with bullying, verbal abuse, and retaliation. This included vandalism to her property, including tearing apart her boots and filling them with dirt and bugs; spraying her vehicle with phlegm; blowing dirt and debris into her open car windows; name-calling; and spreading unfounded rumors about intimate relations with co-workers.