THE PAST page 3

Bias Case Resolved

Bloomfield Township settles a religious
discrimination suit; a similar case is headed for trial.

JULIE EDGAR SENIOR WRITER

B

loomfield Township has
settled out of court with a
former firefighter who ac-
cused co-workers of ha-
rassing him because he is a Jew
and claimed higher-ups did little
to remedy the problem.
Pontiac Osteopathic Hospital
and its chief executive officer, on
the other hand, have chosen to
fight rather than retreat from a
former employee's claims that she
endured years of anti-Semitic ha-
rassment at the hospital. A trial
is set for May 19 before Oakland
County Circuit Court Judge
Robert Anderson.
The Bloomfield Township fire-
fighter, Jonathan Schechter of
Ortonville, and attorneys for
Bloomfield Township did not re-
turn phone calls pertaining to the
settlement. The amount of the
settlement is undisclosed.
Mr. Schechter, a township fire-
fighter/paramedic for 12 years,
sued the township, Fire Depart-
ment Chief Leo Chartier, Lt. Tim-

othy Leahy, Lt. Harl Leach and
firefighters Wayne Snyder and
Nicholas Sesock for what Mr.
Schechter alleged was a cam-
paign of anti-Semitic harassment
and discrimination. He claimed
in his lawsuit, filed in Oakland
Circuit Court lnst March, that fel-
low firefighters referred to him
as "Jew boy" and a "Jewish bas-
tard" and placed a wooden cross
on his lawn and a swastika on his
locker.
He claimed he was also barred
by the department from serving
as a medic during the pope's vis-
it to Detroit. Following Israeli
Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's
assassination in November 1995,
the lawsuit claimed firefighter
Sesock commented, `They ought
to dig that Jew boy up, stuff
him with rags and shoot him
again."
Mr. Schechter, a freelance
columnist for the Oakland Press
who formerly worked as a natu-
ralist at Cranbrook, also claimed

that firefighter Snyder phoned
him a day after Mr. Rabin's as-
sassination and told him, "We
shot one and you're next."
Lt. Leahy, according to the law-
suit, threatened Mr. Schechter
after Mr. Schechter complained
to Chief Chartier about the al-
leged discrimination and harass-
ment.
In November 1995, the chief
assigned officers to investigate
Mr. Schechter's complaints. How-
ever, the lawsuit claimed, the
township failed to fully investi-
gate.
A month later, Chief Charti-
er issued memos to Mr. Sesock
and Lt. Leahy, warning them to
cease harassing behavior against
Mr. Schechter.

Anti-Semitism
charged in township
and at a hospital.

However, the lawsuit alleged,
rather than disciplining his men,
Chief Chartier fabricated charges
of poor performance against Mr.
Schechter and transferred him to
the central fire station. After that,
Mr. Schechter was not assigned
to relief duty at any substation.
He accused Chief Chartier in the

lawsuit of violating the Whistle
Blowers Protection Act.
A few days after the case set-
tled last December, Mr. Schechter
left the fire department.
In the meantime, 42-year-old
Sharon Rapp of Bloomfield Hills
is waiting for her case against
Pontiac Osteopathic Hospital and
outgoing chief executive officer
Jack Whitlow to come to trial in
May.
Ms. Rapp, a risk manager and
attorney for the hospital for 13
years, sued POH and Mr.
Whitlow in February 1996, al-
leging religious and sexual ha-
rassment and retaliation. She
claimed that Mr. Whitlow
bragged about his collection of
Nazi memorabilia, referred to
Jews as "Mercedes Benz lovers"
and praised Hitler.
She said she was also subject-
ed to unwelcome sexual advances
and "psychological torture" by Mr.
Whitlow, who has announced he
is retiring.
Her first written performance
evaluation in August 1995 high-
lighted her shortcomings, and
two months later, Ms. Rapp was
forced to resign "when she could
no longer tolerate the abusive and
offensive work environment."
Ms. Rapp said she is prohibit-
ed from publicly discussing her
case. ❑

way for 1-75; the kosher waiters
union disbanded. Full-service
kosher restaurants in Detroit also
appear to be a passage in the an-
nals of history, a memory.
No one knows exactly how
many such restaurants once ex-
isted, but when Sara's Glatt
Kosher Deli closed in July 1995,
it was the last of its kind here. In
its place opened Classic Coney Is-
land, a kosher fast-food restau-
rant that, too, closed a little over
one year after it opened in De-
cember 1995.
What remains are carry-out
establishments such as Unique
Kosher Carry Out, Jerusalem Piz-
za and New York Pizza World, as
well as the cafeteria at the Jewish
Community Center, none of which
is classified as a restaurant.
Rabbi Elimelech Goldberg of
the Council of Orthodox Rabbis,
the kashruth certification group
responsible for certifying the
kosher standards of the last two
restaurants, offered an explana-
tion
"There might be a sociological
factor in the mindset of the De-
troit kosher consumer," he said.
"I don't believe today that people
are as cosmopolitan. I think peo-
ple enjoy coming home at night.
They're tired, and they don't want
to go out and eat."
But owners of such establish-

The Heatherwood

r

1
...„00,
Our chef... at your service!

Give your pots and pans a rest. Let Heatherwood cook for you. We'll
treat you to a delicious dinner in our elegant dining room.
Entertaining family and friends? Relax, and leave the cooking to us!
Our Independence Plus Program offers daily living assistance
through Beaumont Community Nursing
Hours: Mon.-Fri 9-5 • Sat., Sun., and evening tours available by appointment

Call for a complimentary luncheon and personal tour

She knew if she got just half of what she wanted
for her birthday, she'd need to get organized.

T HE DETRO T J EWI SH NE WS

(810) 350-1777

18

Ask About z
Our Special

ATHERWOOD

CALIFORNIA
CLOSETS.

RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

Once you have one,

r

1

the

Affordably Priced
rom $999 a Mon

(810) 624-1234

Southfield, MI 48034

Somerset North
Troy, MI

Name

Address

City

Call fora free consultation in your home.

22800 Civic Center Dr.

ATHERWOOD

State

Zip

L Phone

everything falls into place.

3160 Haggerty Rd.
West Bloomfleld, MI

ma7Da ARNOLD

Automotive Group Ltd.

Gratiot Ave. at 12 Mile Road, Roseville, Michigan

Mail this coupon for a free brochure.

445-6080

Just 25 minutes from the Birmingham/Bloomfield area
off of t-696"

■

MERCURY

LINCOLN

445-6000