Ohio Firefighter Gets $875K, Job Back after Suit

July 17--Orange Township will pay $875,000 to resolve a sexual-harassment lawsuit that a former firefighter won earlier this year.

The settlement agreement between Raechel Peters, formerly Raechel Sterud, and the Delaware County township also will return Peters to her firefighting job this fall. The settlement put Peters back on the township payroll, but she is due to deliver a baby this summer.

The settlement includes damages, back pay and attorney fees.

Peters sued the township and her supervisor, Fire Lt. Keith Myers, in 2010, saying she had been harassed and eventually fired because she is a woman. A Franklin County jury agreed in March, awarding her more than $1.7 million.

Orange Township was to have paid her $1.67 million; Myers was to pay $75,000.

Lisa Knapp, an Orange Township trustee, said the settlement amount includes Myers' portion of the damages.

Daniel Mordarski, Peters' attorney, said the settlement is "a good ending for everybody.

"To be honest, my client just wants to be a firefighter," Mordarski said. "It's a little bit more than just the money. It's about her identity, it's about her career choice, it's about who she wants to be."

Peters was one of two women in the Orange Township Fire Department before she complained about a male co-worker's advances. She was fired for poor performance in January 2008.

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