SEVERE DAMAGE

WaPo Reporter Sues Newspaper for Discrimination After Sex Assault Disclosure

Felicia Sonmez, a national politics reporter, alleges she was barred from writing stories on the #MeToo movement after disclosing that she was a survivor.

Washington Post national politics reporter Felicia Sonmez filed a lawsuit Thursday against her employer, months after she publicly alleged that she was barred from covering stories on sexual assault because she had come out as a survivor of sexual assault. Her suit also names former editor Marty Baron and other senior leaders as defendants. Sonmez alleges that she was banned from reporting on Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and other #MeToo stories. When Baron retired in February, the ban was lifted but the damage was already done, the suit alleges.

“At various times, Ms. Sonmez became severely depressed, developed intense anxiety, and received treatment from therapists and psychiatrists who she continues to see today,” the lawsuit says. The suit asks for compensatory and punitive damages, and a permanent injunction ordering the paper and its editors to “take all affirmative steps necessary to remedy the effects of the illegal, discriminatory and retaliatory conduct described.”