Ex-New York Senate Aide Accuses Republican Lawmaker of Forcing Him to Wear Leprechaun Costume
BUSINESS CASUAL
A longtime New York Senate Republican aide has filed a human rights complaint against Sen. Daphne Jordan (R) that includes the allegation that the lawmaker directed him to dress as a leprechaun in a parade last March. Kris Thompson, who was once Jordan’s chief of staff, also alleges that the state senator fired him after he declined to attend a campaign strategy meeting, the Times Union reports. “I felt that my direct supervisor (Jordan) violated my basic human rights by directing me to wear clothes not befitting a 61-year-old grown man. Dressing me up as a leprechaun is wrong,” reads the complaint filed by Thompson.
The complaint includes text messages reportedly sent by the senator to Thompson and another staff member that feature online images of leprechaun clothing. “Wig and hat for Kris when he is pulling the candy wagon,” one message reportedly reads, along with “suit to go with it.” “A supervisor, let alone a sitting state senator, should exercise better judgment than to send such images to a subordinate. I refused to wear the clothes to the parade,” Thompson said in the complaint. A spokesperson for Jordan said: “The allegations are baseless and wholly without merit. And frankly, it’s very sad that a disgruntled and terminated employee would lie in such a manner.”