Firefighter/EMT Rebekah Huskey—who loved her job.

Port Clinton, OH — An outside investigation commissioned by the City of Port Clinton, Ohio found that the city’s fire chief, Kent Johnson, repeatedly sexually harassed firefighter/EMT Rebekah Huskey. The December 15, 2023 report also concluded that, while acting as fire chief, Johnson stole funds from the city to the tune of almost $3,000 by both overpaying and underpaying Ms. Huskey.

The city engaged Clemans, Nelson & Associates to investigate some of the allegations against Johnson, specifically the text messages he sent to Ms. Huskey and allegations that he tampered with Ms. Huskey’s pay. The investigation came after Ms. Huskey reported in May 2023 that she had been repeatedly sexually assaulted and harassed by Johnson, who she had known since she was about seven years old.

The investigator found that Johnson sent nonconsensual, explicit text messages to Ms. Huskey multiple times. The messages ranged from asking her to send photos to him, to asking her to stick N95 facemasks down her pants for a while before giving them to him to put on his face, to asking her to “dress up” for him.

“Kent Johnson engaged in the sexual harassment of Rebekah Huskey when he sent unwelcome or offensive written communication of sexually suggestive material to Ms. Huskey, namely text messages,” the Clemans Nelson report found.

The report, which is a public record, did not address at all Ms. Huskey’s allegations of sexual assault, which have gone unaddressed by the city.

The report is the latest development in the numerous investigations into Johnson’s wrongdoing.

Johnson is also being accused in a federal civil-rights lawsuit [UPDATED 5/30/24] of repeatedly sexually harassing and assaulting Ms. Huskey.

Ms. Huskey’s complaint accuses Johnson of sexual comments, ogling her, stalking her, groping her, and sexually assaulting her. Ms. Huskey is suing him for unconstitutional sex discrimination, which includes sexual harassment and assault; violating the substantive-due-process and equal-protection clauses of the 14th Amendment, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Ohio Civil Rights Act; and civil liability for criminal acts, among other claims.

Subodh Chandra, lead counsel for Ms. Huskey, said, “The outside investigator’s report is no surprise to Ms. Huskey. She awaits true accountability.”

The Clemans Nelson outside investigative report into Kent Johnson commissioned by Port Clinton can be found here.

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Chandra Law is experienced obtaining justice for victims of sex/gender discrimination including sexual harassment, employment discrimination, and employment retaliation. We also secure constitutional rights like those at issue in this lawsuit.

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