Jul. 31—Schuylkill County Commissioner George F. Halcovage Jr. has asked the court to dismiss the claims against him in the federal lawsuit filed by four female employees alleging sexual harassment and sexual assault.
A filing for partial summary judgment Friday by his attorney, Gerard J. Geiger, in U.S. Middle District Court, Harrisburg, seeks summary judgment on counts related to intentional infliction of emotional distress, retaliation and aiding and abetting, all under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act; and two equal protection claims.
Regarding intentional infliction of emotional distress, Geiger writes that two of the four female plaintiffs "cannot produce evidence of conduct by Halcovage that is so outrageous in character and so extreme in degree as to go beyond all possible bounds of decency and be regarded as utterly intolerable in a civilized society," he wrote in citing case law regarding such a claim.
He said medical evidence does not meet the standard in proving that "plaintiffs actually suffered the claimed distress, and it was caused by Halcovage's outrageous acts."
The suit's claim of retaliation and aiding and abetting is related to two of the plaintiffs having been suspended without pay, their rate of pay changed, failure to provide them with adequate resources to do their jobs and the restructuring of the tax claim and assessment offices. But Geiger argues that "Halcovage either made none of these decisions or acted as one of three votes on the board of commissioners."
Also, he argued in the five-page motion, Halcovage, as a public official, has "qualified immunity" from suit.
Plaintiffs' attorney Catherine Lowry (formerly Smith), of the Derek Smith Law Group, Philadelphia, said in an email Monday she intends to "zealously oppose any and all motions filed by the defendants in this matter at the appropriate time. The plaintiffs and I are optimistic that the court will deny defendants' motions and look forward to presenting the claims to a jury."
U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph F. Saporito Jr. had granted a defense motion in June to extend the time to file motions for summary judgment to July 31.
There are three additional counts in the lawsuit that specifically name the county as the defendant.
Melissa Melewsky, media law counsel for the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association, said Monday an attorney files for summary judgment when it's believed "the case is insufficient to proceed to the next step in the trial process." If such a judgment is granted, those counts would be dismissed, though either side can appeal a summary judgment to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals.