A federal judge has ordered Ontario County to defend a former public defender who is accused in a civil action of harassing his secretary. The county had argued that it had no obligation to defend Thomas Kidera against allegations that he made unwanted advances to his confidential secretary, Stefanie Lang, because the alleged conduct arose from intentional misconduct.
Records show that Kidera resigned abruptly after the county advised him that it intended to bring disciplinary charges in relation to Lang’s allegations and a subsequent investigation. But Western District Judge Charles Siragusa (See Profile) held that a municipality has a broad duty to defend in a case, like this one, where there is no question the alleged misconduct occurred while the defendant was serving in an official capacity. Here, the alleged behavior took place within the public defender’s office .
