Mary Taylor targets DeWine

SANDUSKY — Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor says attorney general Mike DeWine's handling of a sexual harassment incident in his office is an example of "the good old boy establishment in Columbus" and "something that ought to concern every Ohioan."DeWine replied that it is "sad" that Taylor is "peddling a false and discredited attack," but DeWine refused to answer questions about the circumstances and his actions related to the sexual harassment complaints in the Ohio attorney general's office while he's been the AG. Taylor, who is vying with DeWine for the Republican nomination for governor in the May 8 primary, was reacting to a Saturday article in the Sandusky Register about the comments of her running mate, Cincinnati businessman Nathan Estruth.Estruth told the Register Friday that if published reports about DeWine's intervention into a sexual harassment case are true, it raises questions about his judgment in handling such issues.Taylor weighed in Monday with a statement about the case."The allegations of a cover-up of these very serious charges should be of concern to every Ohioan. This is perhaps the most egregious example yet of the good old boy establishment in Columbus closing ranks and protecting one of their own," Taylor said."Sexual harassment in the workplace is a deeply pervasive problem in our society and victims need to know that they can come forward and tell their story without fear of retribution. By intimidating his own Equal Employment investigator into divulging the name of a whistle-blower, over her objections, Mike DeWine endangered the investigation and possibly subjected the victim to retaliation. He needs to personally address this issue and explain to the women of this state what he has done to keep this type of harassment from happening again," Taylor said.DeWine replied by issuing a statement Monday."It's sad to see Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor peddling a false and discredited attack she pulled from Ohio Democratic Party Chairman David Pepper's failed 2014 campaign. An independent fact-check of the claims made by both Democrats and the lieutenant governor found 'no evidence' to support the claims and dismissed them as 'false'," DeWine said.DeWine never provided the Register any answers to the questions it raised about how a sexual harassment complaint by an intern was handled and allegations he stepped in on behalf of a long-time friend who was believed to be the subject of the investigation. Multiple newspapers reported in August 2014 that during an investigation of alleged sexual harassment in the attorney general's office, DeWine met with his Equal Employment compliance officer, Kristine Cadek, and insisted that Cadek give him the name of a confidential source who had identified an employee in the attorney general's office as a person who had been sexually harassing an intern. According to news reports, Cadek gave DeWine the name.The Sandusky Register broke the story, and followup articles ran in newspapers such as the Columbus Dispatch and Cleveland Plain Dealer.Estruth told the Register DeWine should have stayed out of the probe."As a business leader, I would never intervene into an investigation on sexual harassment in my own organization," Estruth said. "It sends exactly the wrong signal."Investigators should be left alone to do their jobs, Estruth said.He said he also believes agreements of confidentiality for people who come forward should not be violated.DeWine's Monday statement referred to a Feb. 6 Ohio PolitiFact piece on Pepper's claim that "DeWine 'interfered with and stifled' a sexual harassment investigation and then 'eliminated the office that investigated harassment claims within the AG's office'." The report, which comes years after the allegations first surfaced, called Pepper's allegations mostly false. PolitiFact article by Amy Sherman But in three separate investigations of alleged sexual harassment the accuser in each case refused to cooperate and identify the harasser.When the Register first reported on the incident, DeWine would not take questions directly but used spokesmen to respond to the Register's questions. The spokesman's replies to inquiries were non-responsive to the questions asked. Reach reporter Tom Jackson at jackson@sanduskyregister.com and follow him on Twitter @jacksontom.Mary Taylor Mike DeWine