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Fire captain sues Minneapolis again, alleging retaliation

Kristina Lemon's first suit accused then-Chief Bleskachek of harassment; Lemon now says the city has defamed her.

By STEVE BRANDT, Star Tribune

Last update: May 12, 2008 - 9:46 PM

The legal headaches from the brief tenure of Bonnie Bleskachek as Minneapolis fire chief continued on Monday as a sixth lawsuit was filed against the city.

The latest suit on behalf of fire Capt. Kristina Lemon alleges she was subjected to retaliatory treatment after she settled an earlier suit alleging harassment and discrimination by Bleskachek.

The city attorney's office said it hadn't had a chance to study her allegations.

Bleskachek has been demoted to captain. The city agreed to pay $192,500 to settle the five earlier suits, including $35,000 to Lemon.

The former chief was appointed by Mayor R.T. Rybak in 2004 and placed on leave in 2006 after the first of the suits was filed. Several suits accused her of derailing careers within the department while allowing romantic relationships to cloud her professionalism.

Lemon, a 13-year department employee, said her new round of troubles started with her previous lawsuit, which alleged that her rejection of sexual advances by the then-chief led to harassment, discrimination and hostility against her. She alleged that Bleskachek or her allies leaked damaging information about her to a television station.

After the settlement, she alleged, superiors didn't support her when crew members were insubordinate, required her to take a psychological evaluation, reopened an investigation into a fire that destroyed Lemon's garage five years earlier and accused her of falsely reporting a knee injury. She was suspended and demoted, and humiliated and treated more harshly than others who violated department policy, according to her complaint.

The suit, filed by attorney Joni Thom, alleges that Lemon has been retaliated against for seeking worker compensation benefits and protection from discrimination, and that the city has defamed her by alleging that she made false statements and reports.

She's seeking an injunction against further retaliation as well as back pay and additional compensatory and punitive damages of at least $50,000.

Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438

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