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	Former First-Grade Teacher Sues Diocese, Principal in Dismissal By Andrew Clevenger Charleston Gazette [Charleston WV] March 29, 2007 http://www.wvgazette.com/section/News/2007032840 A former first-grade teacher at St. Anthony Catholic School in Charleston has sued the school for firing her, allegedly after she reported her suspicions that a student was the victim of sexual abuse. In a lawsuit filed this month in Kanawha Circuit Court, Beverly Elaine Nichols of Putnam County alleges that a student gave her a sexually explicit drawing made by another first-grader. The drawing made Nichols suspect sexual abuse, and she told St. Anthony Principal John Fitzwater, the suit contends. "Mr. Fitzwater told [her] that he would call the parents and talk to the student about the picture. However, Mr. Fitzwater subsequently threw the picture in the trash and never took any action to investigate the incident," the suit reads. The Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston and Fitzwater are also named in the suit. In a written performance evaluation of Nichols done shortly after the incident involving the drawing, Fitzwater wrote that she "has no Christian values," the suit maintains. Fitzwater also asked Nichols about her health and a recent stress test, according to the suit. Nichols was fired the next day without any written notice as required by her contract, the suit contends. In addition to breach of contract, the suit alleges that Fitzwater's evaluation constitutes libel and defamation of character. "[The evaluation] was executed for the specific purpose of defaming the character of [Nichols] and destroying her reputation in the Catholic teaching community," the suit reads. Reached on Wednesday, diocese spokesman Bryan Minor said that church officials were aware of the suit and were carefully reviewing the complaint, but declined to comment further. "As a matter of policy, the diocese does not make a comment on any pending legal matter," Minor said. Richard Holtzapfel, Nichols' lawyer, also declined to comment, saying the suit speaks for itself. The lawsuit seeks unspecified punitive damages and demands that the court order the defendants to investigate the student who drew the sexually explicit picture and report its findings to the court. To contact staff writer Andrew Clevenger call 348-1723.
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