The top woman leader in the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department has resigned in a scathing letter to Chief Richard Bowers.
Kathleen Stanley, who is one of only three women battalion chiefs in the fire department, was appointed by Bowers to be the Women's Program Officer. Her job was to help women in the department do their jobs without fear of harassment, misconduct or retaliation. Stanley now says those goals are unreachable due to management.
"Fairfax County Fire and Rescue tolerates, and often defends, sexual harassment, retaliation and a hostile work environment: 'zero tolerance' is a hollow term thrown about with false commitment," Stanley wrote in her letter.