Four women officers with the Seattle police department have filed a lawsuit accusing the police chief and the head of the public affairs department of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment.
The four plaintiffs have all, at one point, been “front-facing” officers involved in recruiting and media relations, but now paint a darker picture of the SPD in the claim for damages.
In the filing, Kame Spencer, Jean Gulpan, Valerie Carson and Lauren Truscott all describe a culture they considered “grooming,” “active sexism” and “predatory behavior” by male counterparts.
Each of the four officers have slightly different stories but they all center around Chief Adrian Diaz and Sgt. John O’Neil who are reportedly old friends. Here’s the complaint from Judinna Gulpan.
She said O’Neil invited her to Las Vegas on an ‘invite-only’ trip with other SPD officers, to watch the first week of the NFL season. He iterated to her that it would be “good for her career” to join him, according to the tort claim. Once there, Gulpan realized most other officers were there with their spouses, leaving her and O’Neil as among the few single people on the trip.
She said O’Neil frequently deceived her into spending time alone with him; he invited her to dinner where he “bragged about his dating history and success with women” and reportedly told her, “I’m really good at sex”; he then said everyone was meeting up to watch a football game at the hotel, but she arrived to find it was just him. Upon returning from the trip, Gulpan said she was subjected to rumors that she slept with O’Neil during the trip. When she confronted him about the rumor, he replied, “that would be a feather in my cap.”
She claims that after rejecting his advances, she received negative reviews and was passed over for a promotion. Gulpan complained to Chief Diaz who allegedly put it down to a misunderstanding. He also allegedly told her that complaints liker hers could interfere with her ability to get a promotion.
Officer Valerie Carson also worked for O’Neil in the Public Affairs Unit. She claims Chief Diaz seemed to take an unusual interest in her.
She claims Diaz “began to pay special attention to [her]” shortly after she joined the Public Affairs Unit, calling her to his office for long, mostly one-sided, conversations with her after hours, which forced Diaz’s security detail to have to wait around, as well. Diaz also offered to do handiwork replacing the windows at Carson’s new house. During New Year’s Eve 2020, she said Diaz requested that she drive him around the city, and she thought the request was odd, so she asked that he bring his security detail with him. She said she was afraid he would try to make an advance at midnight, when people traditionally share a kiss to bring in the new year.
Carson said Diaz frequently made flattering comments about her pants, high heels or boots, but when she refused to ride alone with him on New Year’s Eve, she claims Diaz had Sgt. O’Neil reprimand her for her attire.
Chief Diaz’s attorney denied the allegations and also played the race card.
Ted Buck, Diaz’s personal attorney, in a statement to KUOW wrote that the claims against Diaz are false.
“As a Hispanic American with decades of experience in law enforcement, Chief Diaz has faced significant discrimination throughout his career. He well understands the negative impact it can have both personally and professionally,” Buck wrote.
He continued, stating that “a modern big city chief will always be the target of disgruntled, dissatisfied, claimants,” and that Diaz is “confident the revealing light of the judicial process will set the record straight on these allegations.”
One other person named in the suit is Rebecca McKechnie who works in the SPD’s human resources department. The lawsuit depicts her as running interference for Diaz and O’Neil, essentially downplaying any complaints about them that were brought to her. She reportedly told Officer Gulpan to act like a puppy.
To Officer Gulpan, McKechnie allegedly said she should act “like a puppy” around John O’Neil to anticipate his needs “so she could be fed by him.”
She also reportedly told Officer Carson “You just got mad because you don’t like being told what to do.”
Seattle PD issued a response to the lawsuit Monday which may or may not have been written by Sgt. O’Neill. You can read it here.