By Bob Unruh at WND
Note: Editor warns that some content in the article is graphic.
Four San Diego firefighters who claim they suffered sexual harassment when they were ordered by the city to participate in an obscenity-laden "gay" pride parade in 2007 are going to trial for a second time, and their attorney says this time he'll seek to introduce photographic evidence of the illegal public sex at the event.
The firefighters are John Ghiotto, Chad Allison, Jason Hewitt and Alexander Kane and they filed a complaint after being ordered to participate in the July 21, 2007, parade promoting homosexuality and explicit sex.
WND reported earlier when attorney Charles LiMandri, who also serves as the West Coast director for the Thomas More Law Center, launched the legal action against the city of San Diego.
"These men were sexually harassed in clear violation of San Diego's sexual harassment code," LiMandri said. "Further, the California Constitution's freedom of speech provision prohibits compelled speech. What the firefighters were ordered to do was endorse what goes on at this parade through their participation in it."
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Ghiotto, a captain at the time, said he suggested to supervisors that volunteers be used for the parade, but instead officials ordered him to take a crew.
"While moving down the parade route we were subjected to verbal abuse, (show me your hose, you can put out my fire, give me mouth to mouth, flick you fireman) sexual gestures, (showing their penis, blowing kisses, grabbing their crotch, rubbing their nipples, tongue gestures, flipping us off)," Ghiotto reported in a statement.
San Diego's fire chief, Tracy Jarman, is an open lesbian who called the parade a "fun event" in which "all employees are encouraged to participate."
"We were subject to this type of abuse and more throughout the parade route. You could not even look at the crowd without getting some type of sexual gesture. Even the Christian protesters were giving us grief for being a part of this. The experience left me feeling humiliated, embarrassed and offended," Ghiotto said.
"If any of my crew or I were to hang up pictures at the station of what we saw, we would be disciplined!" he said.
