Oregon Lawmakers Continue Fighting Sexual Harassment Investigation

After losing in court last week, Oregon’s top lawmakers aren’t done fighting an investigation into sexual harassment at the Capitol.

On Friday, a lawyer representing Oregon’s Legislative Assembly formally appealed a Nov. 19 ruling that said Capitol officials had to produce documents and sit down with investigators from the state’s Bureau of Labor and Industries. They’re also asking the Oregon Court of Appeals to put that order on hold while they make their case.

“In the event that respondents are not granted this stay, they will be forced to turn over documents by December 5, 2018, in which case there would be no way to ‘put the genie back in the bottle,’” the filing said.

The case revolves around an investigation launched in August, when state Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian filed a complaint alleging that top lawmakers had allowed a culture of sexual harassment to persist in the Capitol.

Read more: https://www.opb.org/news/article/sexual-harassment-oregon-capitol-investigation-appeal/