St. Joseph County GOP leaders demand action after sexual harassment lawsuit

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. - St. Joseph County Republican Party members confronted the Democratic Party Wednesday in a press conference.

This comes after a federal lawsuit filed this week accused a Democratic Party member of repeated reports of sexual harassment.

The St. Joseph County Republican Party is standing behind one of their deputy clerks, Trisha Carrico, after she filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against St. Joseph County Democratic Party board member Muhammad Shabazz.

 “This is an office that the public interacts with on a daily basis and should not have to worry about becoming a next victim,” says Zach Potts, chair of the St. Joseph County Republican Party.  “They should not have to worry about interacting with their local government.”

According to documents, Carrico reported multiple complaints of unwanted sexual advances by Shabazz, and claims they weren’t dealt with properly, leading to continued harassment from Shabazz, which eventually lead Carrico to quit her job in November.

“My female republican member tried her best to work in the hostile and toxic work environment alongside her sexual predator, but eventually ended up resigning…out of fear”, says Potts.

According to Potts, Carrico is also seeking additional legal action towards the county due to a disregard of women in the workforce.

In response to the press conference, St. Joseph Democratic Party Chair Stan Wruble says in a statement,

“Tonight’s press conference was yet another political stunt by the Republican Party.  This matter was immediately and thoroughly investigated by the St. Joseph County Human Resources Department.   However, baseless litigation is often pursued in our society, often for political gain. The appropriate forum to deal with these allegations is a court of law.”