FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          CR
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 1996                        (202) 616-2765
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888


         ASSUMPTION PARISH LOUISIANA SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT
                 SETTLES SEX DISCRIMINATION CASE
                                
                                
     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A Louisiana Sheriff's Department that 
was sued for refusing to consider female applicants for patrol
deputy until 1994 has agreed to pay more than $220,000 in damages
under an agreement reached today with the Justice Department.
     In a suit filed in November 1994, the Justice Department
accused the Assumption Parish Sheriff's Department of
discriminating against women on the basis of sex in violation of
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  
     "The American workplace must remain free of discrimination
and open to all qualified individuals," said Assistant Attorney
General for Civil Rights Deval L. Patrick.  "We intend to take
all steps to ensure it is."
     In its complaint, the Justice Department claimed that the
Sheriff's Department refused to consider hiring April Jones Cola,
a former applicant for the position of patrol deputy because of
her gender, and also engaged in a pattern of discrimination
against women in general for the patrol deputy position.
     Patrick noted that no woman had been hired for the position
since July 1976, even though more than 17% of those applying were
female.  The Sheriff's Department first hired a woman in August
1994, after the Justice Department had already concluded its
investigation.
     Under the settlement, filed in U.S. District Court in New 
Orleans, the Assumption Parish Sheriff's Department will:
    no longer discriminate against female applicants for the
     position of patrol deputy or retaliate against individuals
     who complain about sex discrimination;

    establish a back pay fund of $143,777 for all qualified
     individuals identified as victims of the discriminatory
     hiring practices;

    provide up to five female victims with offers to become
     patrol deputies, retroactive seniority and, where
     appropriate, retroactive retirement benefits; and,

    pay Cola $83,500 in back wages and interest, along with an
     offer of employment as a patrol deputy if she meets all the
     requirements for the position.  

     Cola first filed a complaint with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which concluded that there was
reasonable cause to believe that the Sheriff's Department had
discriminated against her.  The EEOC then referred the matter to
the Justice Department, which conducted its own investigation. 
In March 1994, the Justice Department notified the Sheriff's
Department that its hiring practices discriminated against
qualified female applicants for the patrol deputy position. 
Efforts to resolve the case through negotiations broke down and
the Justice Department sued.
     "Invidious discrimination against women cannot be tolerated,
especially in law enforcement," said Eddie J. Jordan, Jr., U.S.
Attorney in New Orleans.
     The settlement, which still must be approved by the court,
requires the Sheriff to provide the Justice Department with
information about sex discrimination complaints against him for
five years. 
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96-006