May 02, 2008  |  By: CHRIS JOHNSON  | COMMENTS     

A Virginia lawyer is accusing the state attorney general’s office and the Virginia Museum of Natural History of stonewalling in an investigation into whether a gay museum employee was forced to resign because of his sexual orientation.

Attorney Michael Hamar expressed frustration because more than one year has passed and the Office of Equal Employment Services (OEES) has not made a decision in the case. Upon filing the petition, he was informed the investigation should take about four months.

“We’ve tried to follow the appropriate procedure and we’ve gotten absolutely nowhere,” Hamar said.

Hamar, who is gay, brought the case to the OEES on behalf of Michael Moore, a former Martinsville, Va., resident who alleges that the museum forced him to give up his job in 2006 because he’s gay, despite his satisfactory job performance.

Virginia has no law protecting gays against discrimination, but Gov. Tim Kaine (D) in 2006 issued an executive order prohibiting discrimination against state employees on the basis of sexual orientation. Employees working for the Virginia Museum of Natural History receive this protection because the museum is a state-run organization.

While Moore had once demanded that he be reinstated in his job and receive $15,000 in lost compensation as a remedy for his grievance, Hamar said he does not believe that Moore still wants to reclaim his position because he has since moved to Florida.

In a March 20 letter to Assistant Attorney General Jack Knight, who is representing the museum in the investigation, Hamar states that he is “becoming increasingly concerned” that the Virginia Museum of Natural History “may not be properly cooperating with the investigation.” He writes he learned in conversations with Johnsie Williams, the OEES special investigator assigned to the case, that OEES has not yet received all the information it needs from the museum.

“My client has been most patient and has endeavored to fully cooperate in order to allow the Commonwealth of Virginia to work through its administrative complaint process,” Hamar writes. “Here we are a YEAR later and there has been no resolution.”

Hamar threatened to file a federal lawsuit if “at some point the administrative process becomes a farce” and the investigation continues with no resolution.

“One would think that your office, [the museum] and Governor Kaine who signed Executive Order 1 (2006) only to see it ignored … would find my client’s need to take such action embarrassing,” he said.

Moore started his work as a museum development associate in April 2006. According to Moore, during his evaluation in October, museum executive director Tim Gette said, “Michael, there are board members that are aware you are gay, and I do not appreciate you hiding that from me.” Gette then said he has nothing against gays and hires them whenever he can, Moore said. Moore told Hamar that the conversation made him uncomfortable because his sexual orientation had nothing to do with his job evaluation.

Moore was granted a pay raise after his evaluation. A copy of his job performance evaluation reveals that his employer rated him as having an above-average performance in most areas of his job. Moore scored lower on his writing and interpersonal skills, but he agreed to take writing classes at a local community college to improve skills in that area.

Despite his above satisfactory rating, Moore was called into his employer’s office Nov. 14, 2006, where a pre-typed letter of resignation was waiting for him to sign. Moore said Gette told him to sign the letter or be fired. Moore signed the letter that day and later filed a complaint with OEES.

Hamar told the Blade he believes the museum and the attorney general’s office are dragging their feet in the investigation because Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell is not committed to enforcing Kaine’s executive order. In February 2006, McDonnell issued a non-binding opinion stating that Kaine does not have the legal authority to issue an executive order barring discrimination against sexual orientation in the state workforce.

“If you know the attorney general, he’s got a pretty strong anti-gay track record,” Hamar said. “McDonnell’s a Regent law grad and catering to the very conservative far right of the Republican Party so he’s not going to take any position that would helpful for the LGBT community.”

In a March 27 letter responding to Hamar’s concerns, Knight states that “it is unfortunate” that Hamar “made the assumptions and threats”  outlined in the March 20 letter.

Knight denied accusations that he and the museum were stonewalling, arguing that the museum has “never resisted efforts” to investigate Moore’s complaints.