Dona Ana County Undersheriff accused of sexual harassment to appear in court next week

The Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office is still feeling the backlash following allegations of sexual harassment within the department.

Undersheriff Ken Roberts is currently serving a 10-day suspension without pay. The employee accused Roberts of sitting on her lap and that she became emotionally distressed working close to him.

Dona Ana County Sheriff Kiki Vigil didn’t fire Roberts and instead suspended him for 10 days.

The employee also filed a protective order against him. On February 9th, both parties will appear in court where a judge will decide whether to extend the order.

ABC-7 spoke with Frances Williams who once served as head of the New Mexico Commission for the Status of Women.

She says when she heard the allegations against Roberts, she was surprised the county didn’t do more in terms of punishment.

“I find it especially appalling because it’s in the sheriff’s office,” Williams said. “They’re supposed to protect us and to make sure that people don’t hurt or harm us.”

ABC-7 also spoke with El Paso labor attorney John Wenke for his perspective on the case. Wenke is not affiliated with the Robert’s case.

He says that event though the allegations against Roberts weren’t enough to fire him, the victim’s rights, as well as robert’s rights, must both be protected.

“That employee therefore has a right to come back to work and be free from any harassment or retaliation himself,” Wenke said. “But at the same time we have to be extra cautious for the victim because it’s very difficult to make a complaint against a supervisor.”

Wenke added that employers have to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

“The harassers need to be told unequivocally that sexual harassment will not be tolerated and there’s no place for any type of retaliation,” Wenke said.

In Texas a public servant who uses their power to sexually harass someone could be charged with a misdemeanor, but in New Mexico no specific law exists and it’s up to law enforcement agencies to decide whether that public servant will face criminal charges.