By Judy Gibbs Robinson
The Oklahoman

An Oklahoma City police officer who had gender-change surgery two years ago filed a lawsuit against the city last week alleging sexual harassment.
In the lawsuit filed Dec. 20, Paula Schonauer seeks to recover damages for employment discrimination and sexual harassment in violation of state and federal civil rights laws.

Schonauer has been on paid administrative leave since early September. In May, she was removed from street duty and reassigned as a report-taker at the Will Rogers Division, 3112 NW Grand Blvd.

Schonauer said the reassignment came after she complained to supervisors about sexual harassment from rank-and-file officers.

"By the time I voiced my concerns, I knew I couldn't be on the street anymore," Schonauer said. "I realized that I lost the trust of my peers, and I didn't trust them. I felt that I'd been lied to, and I didn't know who I could rely upon professionally and personally."

Police spokesman Capt. Jeffrey Becker said the department will not comment on pending litigation.

Schonauer declined to discuss specifics of her sexual harassment allegations because settlement negotiations with the city are continuing. A specific amount of monetary damages is not included in the lawsuit, which was filed in Oklahoma County District Court.

Schonauer said the gist of her complaint is that police brass failed to act to protect her from discrimination by rank-and-file officers.

"My chain of command was either unwilling or unable to enforce professionalism," she said

Well, I remember when this officer went through with the sex change operation, and figured that eventually he would lose a lot of respect from his/her fellow officers. Now, she is at the point where she can't trust the officers and they can't trust her. Personally, I think she made a big mistake by changing her gender, especially being a police officer. Although I dont condone harrassment anywhere, especially in the work place, I can see where she may be the subject of jokes, etc... In the end, I'm sure she will win her lawsuit, get paid an enormous amount of money, and resign as a police officer.