A fired Butler County Prison corrections officer is suing her former employer for alleged sex discrimination.

Judy Wolfe of Harmony also accuses the county of a hostile work environment, wrongful suspension, wrongful termination and retaliation for protected activity.

The civil complaint, which was filed June 27, names both the county and the prison as defendants.

County Commissioner Dale Pinkerton, prison board chairman, said he couldn’t comment on the specifics of the case.

“It’s an ongoing case,” Pinkerton said. “I can’t really say anything with regards to it.”

However, he did say he has faith in the employees who oversaw the disciplinary actions against Wolfe.

“They know they did the right thing,” Pinkerton said.

Warden Rick Shaffer declined to comment.

Wolfe, who had been a captain, could not be reached for comment.

She was fired in a Feb. 27, 2013, letter after being suspended two weeks earlier.

In the letter, the county claimed Wolfe admitted she called a subordinate on Jan. 27, 2013, to get prescription medication for her own use while on duty.

According to the letter, “The next morning, you met the officer in the parking lot and he gave you three adderol pills, which you admitted you consumed.”

The letter also stated it was reported that Wolfe asked other officers for their prescribed medication in prior months.

Wolfe faced other allegations.

The termination letter stated Wolfe’s nephew, referred to as R.S., was jailed on Jan. 17, 2013. Wolfe then allegedly had interactions with her nephew without approval by prison administration.

According to the letter, “You gave your nephew, inmate R.S., items in a brown bag on multiple occasions and also put money on his commissary account, without notifying your superior officers and without obtaining their approval as is required.”

The letter concluded that the county had no alternative but to fire Wolfe due to these “serious violations” and previous disciplinary history, which included two prior suspensions.

Wolfe’s lawsuit claims she was innocent of the 2013 violations so the suspension and firing were not justified.

The complaint alleges Wolfe was subjected to a hostile work environment, beginning in early 2012 under then Warden Rich Gigliotti.

According to the complaint, “Gigliotti began targeting plaintiff with unjustified criticism and discipline designed to undermine her advancement to warden or assistant warden when he retired.”

Gigliotti could not be reached for comment.

The complaint states Wolfe was accused of performance deficiencies that were without merit.

In 2013, Shaffer succeeded the retiring Gigliotti as warden.

Although the lawsuit points out Wolfe was not named warden or deputy warden, the county maintains she never applied to be the new warden.

The county could not confirm whether she applied to be deputy warden.

A phone message left at the Law Offices of Neal A. Sanders, which represents Wolfe, was not returned.

The retaliation allegation stems from Wolfe’s 2013 filing of wrongful suspension, hostile work environment and gender discrimination complaints with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission.

Both agencies dismissed the complaints because they were not able to confirm that Wolfe was a victim of discrimination.