Prosecutor demands jury trial stemming from discrimination complaint
Deputy alleges Blaine County retaliated against her
By PETER BOLTZ
Express Staff Writer
Ninety days ago, attorney Cynthia Woolley said she hoped her client,
Blaine County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jill Bolton—alleging employment
discrimination—would not have to push for a jury trial against Blaine County and its
prosecuting attorney Douglas Werth.
At the same time, Blaine County’s attorney in this case, Candy Dale
of Boise, said she did not plan to make any formal response to Bolton’s claims. They
had no merit, she said.
The statutory 90 days for a response from the county passed, and on June
27, Bolton filed a complaint against Blaine County and its prosecutor, Doug Werth,
demanding a jury trial.
Bolton was hired by Werth October 1997, and is still employed as deputy
prosecutor by the county. On Feb. 14, 2000, she notified the county she had filed claims
of employment discrimination against the county.
From that date to the present, the suit filed last week in Fifth District
Court charges the county "intentionally retaliated" against her because she had
filed the discrimination charges.
Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment
discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. Among other
things, Bolton claims the county discriminated against her with respect to compensation,
opportunities for advancement and her status as an employee because of her sex.
The charge of retaliation is also in violation of Title VII which
prohibits employers from punishing employees who have charged them with employment
discrimination. The suit charges the county with retaliating against her with respect to
the terms, conditions and privileges of her employment.
In a telephone interview, Woolley said her client was not "in this to
hit the jackpot. She just wants justice done in the Blaine County prosecutor’s office
and for that office to comply with federal and state laws and county policy."
Neither Werth nor the county’s attorney in this case, Candy Dale,
were available for comment.
