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Wednesday, April 12, 2023
thechronicleonline.com
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Big Ship Kelli Nicholson / Country Media, Inc.
One of the largest cargo ships to be on the Columbia River, traveled from Seattle, through Astoria, passing St. Helens and arriving in Portland this last week. The vessel, MSC Katie, is 1,200 feet long and 158 feet wide. The MSC can carry 12,400 20-foot containers. The large ship was built in 2012 with a deadweight of 154,792 and gross tonnage of 140,096. The MSC Katie was moored in Portland, then departed for Vancouver, Canada, where it was moored as of April 11, before it heads to Korea. See more photos with this story at thechronicleonline.com.
Lawsuit filed against CRFR WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
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CRFR Fire Chief Joel Medina took the oath of office in January 2021.
Courtesy photo
No Confidence Vote delivered to CRFR by Union STAFF REPORT Country Media, Inc.
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he St. Helens Professional Fire Fighters Association, IAFF Local 3215, has issued a vote of no confidence in Fire Chief Joel Medina of Columbia River Fire & Rescue (CRFR). “The vote passed unanimously. Local 3215 cites Medina’s unprofessionalism, conduct unbecoming, inability to responsibly manage District finances, professional incompetence, and failed leadership as some of the concerns leading to their decision,” according to a release from the Association. The following is from the Association: The Fire Fighters, Paramedics, and Emergency Medical Techni-
cians of Local 3215 work diligently to always remain prepared to address the dynamic conditions and unique challenges that the Fire Service brings. Unfortunately, these efforts have been hampered by having to both work and live in a hostile and toxic environment fostered by Medina since his arrival to our District. As a result, members face worsening morale and working conditions, and are continually forced to answer to upper management that does not demonstrate or uphold the same morals and ethics as the membership of Local 3215. Local 3215 also expresses concern about Medina’s mismanagement of taxpayer money and
See CRFR Page A9
lawsuit has been filed against Columbia River Fire & Rescue (CRFR) by two former employees. The lawsuit filed in Columbia County Circuit Court alleges sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, retaliation for whistleblowing, gross financial mismanagement, protected medical leave interference, and wrongful termination. Jennifer Motherway and Anika Todd, two former CRFR employees, filed the lawsuit through their attorney Rebecca Cambreleng Friday, April 7. The former employees are seeking $822,217.92 in damages, citing sexual harassment, retaliation for whistleblowing, a hostile work environment, unethical hiring practices, and financial mismanagement under CRFR Fire Chief Joel Medina. “This is an action for sexual harassment, retaliation for reporting sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment based on sex, retaliation for whistleblowing of gross mismanagement and waste of funds by a public entity, protected medical leave interference and retaliation and wrongful termination,” the filing on Motherway and Todd’s behalf stated. Motherway started at CRFR in 2012 and worked as the district’s recruitment and retention coordinator and public information officer. Todd began working at the district in 2018 as an administrative and financial assistant. On February 7, 2023, both workers were “laid off,” but the layoff was a pretext for unlawful termination, according to the filing. Motherway and Todd were two of seven female administrative em-
ployees who “were forced to leave” during Chief Medina’s tenure, the lawsuit states. Sexual harassment and hostile work environment
Many of the allegations against CRFR relate to Fire Chief Medina, who took control of the fire district in December 2021. Chief Medina previously worked as a fire chief in Florida at Village of Tequesta Fire Rescue. The lawsuit alleges that inappropriate behavior on Chief Medina’s behalf began mere weeks after his arrival at CRFR. Chief Medina would show female subordinates pictures of scantily clad women, telling them that’s how they dressed where he came from, and that his last assistant was “hot” and all the other males were jealous of him,” The lawsuit states. “This was said while complaining that the women in the office dressed like “construction workers,” indicating that he would like them to dress more provocatively.” The lawsuit states that despite being told that his conduct was making the female support staff uncomfortable, Chief Medina’s behavior continued. In June of 2021, Todd made a complaint about Chief Medina’s “inappropriate behavior” to then Finance Director and Human Resources Manager Merit Nelson. No investigation was conducted, according to the suit. Chief Medina also pressured female administrative staff, including the plaintiffs, to be his “personal assistant.” This was a position that was not budgeted, and has not been an existing position in the past, the suit states.
When Plaintiff Todd refused the offer to be his “personal assistant,” Chief Medina stated that she would “never be more than a receptionist.” “Chief Medina then attempted to direct Plaintiff Motherway to be his ‘personal assistant,’” the suit states. “When Plaintiff Motherway protested that she had too much on her plate, Chief Medina told her she needed to ‘focus on [his] needs.’” In addition to inappropriate sexual misconduct, the suit alleges that Chief Medina was abusive to female staff, screaming, making threats, using inappropriate language, and using physical aggression to express emotion. In May of 2022, the Finance Manager at the time submitted a grievance to Chief Erick Holsey against Cheif Medina, Human Resources Manager Kate Lehner, and Deputy Chief Eric Smythe. The grievance was elevated to the board. However, the employee ultimately resigned to the hostile work environment, the suit states. In June of 2022, the board of directors hired William Landis of Pacific Consulting and Investigations LLC to conduct an investigation into the female claims of a hostile work environment. “Upon learning about this investigation, Chief Medina told employees they needed to be ‘loyal to the district and no one else,’” the lawsuit alleges. Financial mismanagement and unethical hiring In addition to the sexual harassment allegations, the lawsuit alleges financial wrongdoings by the chief
See LAWSUIT Page A9
CCSO levy aims to add new deputies WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
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he Columbia County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) has proposed a property tax that will appear on the May ballot. Sheriff
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Vol. 141, No. 16
Brian Pixley hopes that the fouryear local option levy will enable the addition of seven new deputies for Columbia County. The new tax would be 29 cents per $1,000 in assessed value. This means a home taxed on a $400,000 assessed value would add $116 to its yearly property tax bill. Sheriff Pixley believes this measure will address what he says has been an issue for a long time. “For years, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office has been chronically underfunded and understaffed. This puts our Columbia County residents at risk as well as our Deputies and city police officers,” Pixley said. “Our Deputies are dealing with over twice the number of calls for service per deputy per year as the officers in the busiest city in Columbia County. This levy would decrease that individual call load, provide for faster response times, and increase the safety for Columbia County residents.” The Enforcement Division encompasses eight distinct service units with a total staff of 15 Deputies, one Detective, and one K-9, according to the CCSO website. Pixley says that the need for more deputies will help provide 24/7 coverage for all of Columbia
County. “Currently, St. Helens Police Department is the only 24/7 law enforcement in the county, which doesn’t help residents outside of the city limits,” Pixley said. “This levy would allow for county-wide 24/7 coverage. During the busiest hours of the day, deputies would be assigned to specific districts in the county (north county, south county, and Nehalem Valley), which would further reduce response times and provide better service to citizens.” The base tax rate for county operations as of now is $1.39 per $1,000. Pixley wants to retain the current base tax, allowing the levy to supplement the existing tax revenue. County residents already pay another CCSO levy which funds jail operations at a rate of 58 cents per $1,000 in assessed value. This means that taxpayers would pay around 87 cents per $1,000 on both levies. Under the new collective bargaining agreement, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Association has seen a contract increase of 10 percent, according to Columbia County’s website. The salary increase means that the cost of hiring new deputies will also increase. According to the levy, the 29 cents per $1,000 will raise
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The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office is seeking a levy to increase the number of deputies.
$1,868,330 in 2023, $1,953,433 in 2024, $2,042,434 in 2025, and $2,135,478 in 2026. The total is estimated as a levy of $7,999,685. Pixley says that if the levy is not passed, the CCSO will not be able to add more deputies, and there will be issues with their service as a result. “During the last election, residents were very clear that 24/7 patrol coverage was important to
them,” Pixley said. “If this levy is not passed in May, then we will be unable to provide additional deputies. In addition, limited coverage hours, slow response times, and reduced citizen safety will continue to be an issue.” Follow continued coverage at thechronicleonline.com and in the Wednesday print editions of the Chronicle.