By Harold J. Adams
The Courier-Journal

VEVAY, Ind. - The Belterra riverboat casino, which was fined more than $2 million by state regulators last year over allegations stemming from a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by two former female employees, is again being sued on a sexual harassment charge.

A Northern Kentucky woman who was fired from her job as a captain of the Miss Belterra gambling boat filed suit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New Albany.

Sonya C. Skinner, 43, of Union contends in the suit that she was sexually harassed during her two-year stint as captain and was fired in January because she refused orders to violate state regulations and overload the boat with more patrons than the state allows.

Skinner is seeking damages of at least $1.5 million, along with re-instatement as a Belterra captain.

Cyndy Canada, the director of human resources at Belterra, said the company does not comment on pending legal action.

In her suit, Skinner claims that the harassment was tolerated by Belterra and included "repeated adverse sexual comments" made to and about her by her supervisors," nude photographs of females in the pilot house" of the boat and "the display and sale of multiple sexually explicit, pornographic and adult magazines" in a gift shop next to the boat.

Belterra "failed to state a coherent reason" when Skinner was fired Jan. 23, according to the suit.

"Eventually, (Skinner) was told that she was terminated for violation of company policy," it says.

The complaint says Belterra's reasons were a false pretext "to cover up wrongful conduct and discrimination based on (Skinner's) sex."

Skinner was hired by Belterra in September 2000 as a first mate on the casino boat, the suit says. She was promoted to captain two months later and was the only female captain there when she was fired.

Skinner is seeking $500,000 each for sex discrimination, sexual harassment and defamation, along with lost pay and benefits, as well as unspecified amounts of compensatory and punitive damages

The suit by Skinner comes less than three months after the confidential settlement of another complaint filed early last year by two women who had worked as player development managers.

In that suit the two - Gwen Perry and Logananne Sabline, both of Madison - complained about a golf tournament hosted by the company the previous summer at which guests were entertained by prostitutes.

Perry and Sabline also said they were told to kiss male customers and otherwise use sexuality to entice more gambling.

The Indiana Gaming Commission conducted an investigation, fined Belterra $2.2 million and closed the casino for three days for using the prostitutes and for improperly providing gamblers with money.

Todd Powers, the attorney for Skinner, said he will cite the earlier case among others to show a pattern of conduct on Belterra's part.