First, she filed a sexual harassment lawsuit. Then she was suspended without pay for a separate incident. Now she's being investigated for something else.

A sheriff's captain in Denver claims her employer is retaliating against her for filing a sexual harassment lawsuit against a co-worker. Otherwise, she says, the timing of these events doesn't make sense.

After the woman filed the lawsuit, she was reportedly disciplined for filing a false report and lying to her supervisors. She was put on a 70-day suspension without pay, apparently the longest suspension the department had ever seen. Some wanted her demoted to a deputy, but she ultimately stayed a captain.

Now that she is about to return to work, the Denver Police Department is allegedly investigating a nonprofit organization the woman heads, the Denver's Sheriff's Foundation. The organization is reportedly designed to provide financial help to deputies who are ill or injured. It is being investigated for alleged misuse of funds.

The employee points to her spotless record of the last 18 years and the timing of the investigation as to why she suspects retaliation. The deputy accused of harassing her is the former treasurer of the foundation, sources indicate.

The sheriff's captain told a Denver news station she believes the investigation stems from retaliation. She says she had previously emailed the state investigator, saying she was initially afraid to file her lawsuit out of fear of being retaliated against. She told the station, "If you look ... what I have done with the sheriff's department, it far outweighs" any other negative associations.

Source: www.kdvr.com, "Sheriff's captain says sexual harassment claim results in retaliation," Ginger Delgado, 13 May 2011