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C Hanchey
More turmoil inside the Stevens County Courthouse.
The woman didn't think anyone would believe her. She says that's why she began to secretly record the supervisor of her court-ordered work crew commenting on her breasts, her intimate relationship with her husband and her "sex appeal."
Last Friday, the woman, identified here by her initials R.B., filed a claim for damages in Stevens County, where the alleged harassment took place. The claim for $2.5 million accuses Pat Walsh, who used to supervise jail work crews, of making "boorish and highly inflammatory and offensive statements" about R.B., as well as Stevens County employees and others on the work crew.
"What he said is enough to make Trump blush," says Brendan Kidd, the Spokane attorney representing R.B.
The claim also accuses Stevens County District Court Administrator Nadine Borders of trying to cover up the harassment by telling the head of another department to investigate the allegations, but to "keep this between us."
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Stevens County District Court Judge Gina Tveit
Finally, the claim says that
Stevens County District Court Judge Gina Tveit — who presided over the DUI case that landed R.B. on the work crew in the first place — overstepped her judicial objectivity and retaliated against R.B. for reporting the harassment.
Tveit denies that she retaliated against R.B. or that she overstepped her role, but declined to comment further.
Borders says via email that "the actual facts are significantly different than what has been stated in the tort claim," but also declined to elaborate due to the potential lawsuit.