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July 18, 2004

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Published July 18 by the Associated Press

Emergency dispatcher sues over firing

Associated Press

COVINGTON — A former emergency dispatcher who is deaf in one ear filed a federal lawsuit against the Northern Kentucky agency that fired her, claiming it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Andrea Fitzgerald, 33, of Fort Wright, accused the Boone County Public Safety Communications Center of terminating her to "avoid a `potential liability in the future'" in the lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Covington.

Fitzgerald said she was fired after five weeks on the job. She claims the communications center knew of her disability before hiring her.

Claims filed in a lawsuit give only one side.

The communications center's acting director, Mike Stem, declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Fitzgerald now works in the public safety department at Northern Kentucky University.

The lawsuit seeks her reinstatement with back pay and fringe benefits, plus compensatory damages for emotional distress and harm to her reputation, punitive damages and legal fees.

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